


Reign of Shadows: Season 1

by Xandyflare



Series: Reign of Shadows [3]
Category: AdventureQuest Worlds, Destiny (Video Games), Fire Emblem Series, Rockman X | Mega Man X, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alliance-Umbra War, Angst, Chrono angel (Reign of Shadows), Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Light and dark philosophy, Luxonia (Reign of Shadows), Morality, Multi, Otherworlder War, The Alliance (Reign of Shadows), Umbrati (Reign of Shadows), Worldbuilding, time skip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-11
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-10-08 09:01:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 49,128
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17383610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xandyflare/pseuds/Xandyflare
Summary: The universe is made up of so many pieces. There's the infinite light and infinite dark on either side. In between are the endless timelines, watched over by the vigilant chrono angels.However, the balance of the universe has been upset by the darkness of the Umbra Mondo. The chrono angel Carla plans to right the wrongs by doing something no chrono angel has done before in centuries: make a timeline immune and gather its inhabitants to fight back.This is the Alliance's timeline, and this is their story.Join us on the Reign of Shadows Discord! https://discord.gg/5mXXcXz





	1. Light Spark

**Author's Note:**

> Characters in this chapter:
> 
> -Lucy-1  
> -Talli  
> -Ikora Rey  
> -Zavala  
> -Shaxx  
> -Carla  
> -Artix von Krieger  
> -Shiro  
> -Takumi  
> -Cedar  
> -Dynamo  
> -Pidge
> 
> Chapter Summary:
> 
> Following the ending of DestinyX, the Tower is under attack by mysterious beings of darkness. As the Vanguard defends the Tower, a brand new ally shows their face to play a hand of cards never dealt before.

The creature was human-shaped. Ever shifting in and out of the shadows of the hallway, there was purple so dark it could be mistaken as black in place of tan for their skin. Red, long claws protruded out of their hands. Yellow voids with no hint of pupil instead of normal-colored eyes stared into its opponent, but besides that, it seemed all too human.

After standing in place, a fanged grin spread slowly on its face. Its attacker stood in place, watching whatever it was charge at them, obviously with the intent to kill.

When the abomination was halfway there, the figure raised a gun that matched and magenta and white scheme of their armor. The hand cannon's barrel clicked, moving when they fired only once. With that, a bullet streaked through the air and landed straight in the creature's chest, downing it.

The figure's head, covered by a sleek helmet, looked left, then right, before behind. "Muffin, they're all gone now."

Slowly, a child crept out of hiding. Wearing a dress that was a lighter brown than her hair, her irises seemed to glow bright blue. Light blue canvas shoes made small pitter patter noises as they darted across the floor so the small girl could hide underneath the woman's cloak.

"Mommy, what are all these bad things...?" Talli looked up at her adoptive mother.

Lucy-1 directed her gaze towards the body of the creature, which had evaporated into black smoke that harmlessly drifted away. "I...I don't know. But they aren't good."

Talli sniffled. "Nothing that's dark is good..."

"...Come on." The woman took the young girl's small hand into her gloved one. "Stay close right behind me, and tell me if you see anything coming at us from behind. Can you do that, muffin?"

"Y-Yea! I'll be brave!"

"That's a good girl." Lucy smiled underneath her helmet before rapping her pistol that still smoked slightly on her helmet. "Hey, Echo!"

On cue, in a flash of blue, something appeared next to Lucy. The floating robotic creature could easily fit into your hand, with one glowing blue optic. The rest of it was its shell, colored white with magenta colorings added to it.

Echo, the Ghost of the Guardian that had summoned her, looked around. "I hear you, I hear you. How's everything hanging?"

"We're both okay. Have you gotten contact with Zavala and Ikora?"

The Ghost imitated a sigh. "Not yet. Whatever all this stuff is, it's killed our communications. Like in the Red War."

A shiver involuntarily went down Lucy's spine. "The Red War...Do you think...?"

"It can't happen again. Not so soon." After a moment's hesitation, Echo turned back to look at the woman, with a hint of unease in her automated voice. "Right?"

Before Lucy could say anything more, there was another growl, easy to hear because of no other noise in the hall. She whipped her head to see another one of those...things...emerging from the darkness, ready to most likely kill her and the small child in tow.

"Uh, I think we should get a move on!" Echo alerted the two girls.

"Right. Talli, hold on!" Lucy began sprinting forward, dragging the small girl behind her as Echo retreated to wherever she came from.

As the two continued on, there finally were other sounds besides Lucy's personal gun, the Reaper's Hand, unloading bullets into any of the creatures they came by. But judging by what the sounds were, yelling and gunfire with the occasional Ghost chime of "Guardian down!", it wasn't a good change.

Finally, Lucy burst out of the apartment complex of the Tower, Talli still holding tight to her hand. Feet making her skid to a stop, her head was then mounted on a swivel, turning all around to survey the damage of her home that had just been regained and repaired.

The creatures were everywhere, attempting to destroy every Ghost and Guardian their claws could get a grip on. While most Ghosts dodged easily, she could see one get snatched out of the air before being brutally torn into. She could hear its static-laced screams from across the room, and even when she shot down its attacker, she knew she was too late to save it.

"I'll...stay out of sight," she heard Echo privately speak to her.

"That can be arranged." Lucy's voice grew dark, trembling with rage, as she placed both hands on her gun.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Once again, Echo chimed in. "What about Talli?"

"...I'll go find Shaxx," Lucy dryly answered before pulling off Talli once more.

True to her thoughts, Shaxx was not actively fighting, but instead gathering the Guardians in a position to hold. Directing them as best as he could, the Titan watched with a hint of pride as every Guardian he saw held their ground against all odds of the endless onslaught of darkness.

He couldn't miss the Hunter in white running up to him. "Ah! Lucy-1! How fares the fight?"

"Not good. I need to get out there, and you know what that means."

Shaxx sighed. "Yes. I do know." He leaned to peer at the girl holding onto Lucy. "Hello, brave child. I believe you will be staying with me for the time being?"

Talli nodded. "Yea."

"Do not hide on your mother's leg, child! Be brave! Step out, spread your wings, and fly like a mighty angel!"

Lucy sighed, gritting her teeth ever so slightly under her helmet. "Make sure she doesn't get hurt, alright?" She seemed to carelessly gesture the barrel of her gun at Shaxx. "Otherwise..."

"You have drilled this concept into me, Lucy-1! I understand your motherly threats perfectly! Rest assured, your child will remain unharmed, no matter what!"

"Keep that promise, will you?" Lucy began to head off. "Stay with him, muffin. I'll be back soon."

The front lines were even worse. All of the creatures seemed to make a blanket of darkness, making it almost impossible to see correctly. So she did her best to repeat a process of reloading, firing, reloading again, and repeat onwards.

She could barely catch a glimpse of a Titan's Ward of Dawn, but she could certainly hear the shout of "All Guardians, with me!" Immediately obeying her superior, Lucy legged it to the Ward, continuing to fire upon the creatures as she went.

With one slide, she crossed over the line the bubble made, entering the shield safely. Sitting up, she looked at Zavala holding the bubble in place like she thought, and Ikora blazing the battlefield next to him with her gun in hand.

"What's up?" Lucy yelled over the sounds of battle. Sitting up, she spread her arms out in a challenge. "Am I missing out on the fun?"

"I believe you are," Ikora replied, looking over her shoulder at the woman. "Come over here and assist us, Lucy!"

Spinning her gun, Lucy gladly took position in between Zavala and Ikora. A grin forming under her helmet, she burst into her own Super, Arc light shimmering over her body. "Can and will do, Rey!"

Through the smoky haze, it clicked in Lucy's mind that maybe this was why Cayde wanted her to follow in his footsteps as Hunter Vanguard. She fit the mold nicely, bringing back the humor that the Exo's absence took. Even their fighting styles were similar, except for their chosen methods of Supers. Even more, Ikora and Zavala already knew her as a valued friend due to the past years together. She had an advantage of friendship, of trust that allowed her to fit into her new title as Vanguard easily.

"Lucy!" She was suddenly snapped out of her thoughts when Ikora yelled a second too late.

From the side, a whole force came crashing into her. Her helmet flashed warnings, but they did not stay for long, as it came flying off from the force and lost into the sea of darkness all around her.

Speaking of, one of those things was now on her, threatening to claw her now-bare face wide open. One hand gripped tight at their wrist, holding it away as best as she could, while one leg was planted firmly on her chest. It was a struggle that was less power, more endurance. And somehow, this thing was winning, despite it being more organic than metal.

Lucy gulped as she saw the razor red claws get closer to her face. This wouldn't be the most painful times she's died. But, thinking back to all of those Ghosts crushed in an instant, she couldn't help but think it'll be her last death.

Those eyes of the creature seemed to stare right into her soul. A manic grin was evident on their face, one that sent chills down her spine. With a small hint of a blue glow cast on her face, she squeezed her still-working eye shut, prepared for the inevitable.

Wait...blue? But the creature wasn't blue in any part. Where was the light coming...?

Lucy opened her eyes again just in time to see a lance run through the being. The head itself was made of some brilliant, glowing blue metal that faintly reminded Lucy of her daughter's eyes. That was where the light was coming from, she realized.

 

The being evaporated into smoke, as all others did, and Lucy got a good glimpse at who saved her. The woman standing over her wore an overcoat that split away in the front, showing black skintight leggings. Her boots were slightly elevated, judging by the blue heels. In her hand, was the lance. On her back, were brilliant blue wings that illuminated the entire area with their unearthly glow.

 

But most important were the eyes. Once more, like her daughter, they had that unnatural blue glow to them, mystifying. But in this situation, they were almost threatening. Not to Lucy, but to all the creatures around them. A consideration went into Lucy's mind that maybe this...angel...was some sort of humanoid race that Talli belonged to?

 

The thought quickly went away when the woman spoke. "Get up, unless you want this to be your resting grave!"

 

Lucy quickly scrambled up, grabbing her gun in the process. "Yea, yea. I hear you. I hear you, okay? Not that I'm complaining about my home being my grave, but-" Lucy was interrupted so she could dodge a lunge from a creature before she shot it down. "Whatever. Who are you?"

 

"My name is Carla. And I've come with an army to combat hers!"

 

"'Her'? Who's 'her'? And what army?"

 

"Look around, and there will be your answer."

Lucy raised an eyebrow, but did so. Eyes scanning over the battlefield, she noticed two things. One was blue dust floated through the air like snowflakes, drifting down to land on all before dissipating. Second, there were a lot more people striking down the creatures now.

What struck her as odd was all the...flavors they came in. Some looked like from the medieval ages, while others looked like they were from a technological period that was not their own. However, help was help, and they would gratefully accept the new soldiers to this cause that was becoming quite peculiar.

Lucy, upon sighting Ikora, scrambled over to her, hair flying. "Hey, uh...Rey?"

"If you are going to ask where all of these people came from, I will answer as honestly as possible." The Warlock paused. "I haven't the faintest clue. But they are aiding us in a fight that we were losing."

"True, true!" Lucy nodded before emptying another clip at a line of the creatures. "I just wanna know what these things are!"

"Umbrati." Both ladies spun around to see the angel woman, though now, her wings were gone. But Lucy swore there were wings. "Creatures of darkness, sent to consume all light."

"Then are they Taken?" Lucy questioned.

The woman looked away. "No. They are of true darkness, not the one that you know. There are many types of darkness in this universe. You are witnessing the power of the ultimate darkness."

"...Okay, Speaker, take it down a notch," Lucy retorted. "Just who are these people?"

"I used my abilities to call upon heroes of various worlds and backgrounds to fight this battle. I will touch upon it more when the Tower, and the Last City, is secure."

Both of them watched the woman rush back into the fight, Lucy calling after her. "Hold on! How do you even know what this place is called?!"

Ikora opened fire once more next to her. "We'll worry about that later! Right now, I think I can see a break in their numbers!"

Lucy huffed, before shading her eyes with her hand. "Yea, I got that...You do that..."

Surveying the new allies, temporary or not, Lucy was pulled in by their weapons. One group with matching armor had different kinds of weapons that seemed to shift form at a mere command. A trio of armored individuals wielded guns of different kinds, though one had a shimmering saber made of what looked like plasma.

What finally snapped her out of her wondering gaze was an arrow narrowly missing her face, instead inserting itself into an Umbrati right next to her. She watched it drop to the ground, writhing, before she shot it twice to end it.

The sound of somebody dropping down from above and landing from behind her got her attention. "Princess?"

She turned. The man had to be at least in his mid-twenties, with two scars on his face, one at the edge of his mouth, the other on his cheek. Silver hair was tied behind his head, fanning out just like the black coat he wore. Not only that, but her retinas could pick up his left arm as completely metal. It seemed to resonate within her data as a similar model. Who even was he?

"Excuse me?" Lucy managed to find her voice.

The man stood up, standing just at her height. "It's me. Takumi!"

Takumi...The name was so familiar to her. Just like a piece, it slipped into a puzzle of infinite parts that seemed to make up her past. A name to one of those glass faces that have been lost.

"T...Takumi. Yea, I have heard that name before."

"Yea...Last time we met, we weren't exactly on good terms per say...But you were a nice person, princess. Judging by all of your friends."

"Can you just...maybe call me by my name?"

"Alright. I'll go with Liberty."

No wonder Lucy sounded so familiar. Liberty had to have been her old name. The name of Lucy-0, before Lucy-1.

Takumi looked over and around. "Looks like the fight's dying down. Whoever these people are, they quickly turned the tide."

"How did you end up here?"

"It was weird. I just suddenly was. I didn't know what was going on, but I had a feeling we needed to help in this fight. And you?"

Lucy paused. "...I've been here for five years. It's been my home. I just don't know how I ended up here. I can't remember."

"So that's why nobody found you." Takumi huffed, watching the last of smoke curl away in the air. "You were in a world none of us knew of."

Ikora walked up to the both of them. "You know Lucy-1?"

"Lucy?" Takumi questioned.

"It's complicated, but...It's the name I go by, since...I lost all of my memories." Lucy explained matter-of-factly.

"You...have?"

Before Lucy could respond, the woman's voice broke through. "May I please get everyone's attention?!"

Everyone looked. There, the woman was currently climbing onto a set of boxes, the threat of Umbrati long gone. Heads turning, she looked around at the crowd that she herself made.

"You may be wondering why you're here."

"We sure as hell are!" A voice came out from the back.

Takumi sighed next to Lucy. "That's one of my surrogate fathers, Dynamo."

The woman tried to recover. "Well...First of all, my name is Carla. And I am locked in a fight with the woman who sent this army to destroy this tower. Her name is unknown, but she goes by the title the Shadow Queen.

"Recently, I had noticed that she was gathering an army. For what, I didn't currently know. I investigated as best as I could, which wasn't easy due to me not having access to the realm of existence she resides in. But, with enough effort, I learned that she planned to destroy this place out of fear of its power. So, I decided to intervene.

"For all that do not know, this place is called the Tower. Residing in the Last City of this world, it is an embodiment of light for its people. The Shadow Queen was scared of it, feared what would happen if the people here discovered her existence.

"Well, now you actually know of her. I summoned all of you heroes here not because of your status of power. I summoned you out of heroism, the courage to fight against impossible odds. And if you have never fought against these hundred to one odds in the world, well, I implore you to now.

"I need your aid. You can help me, or you can walk away. I will not judge you if you do. Frankly, even with you, I can't be sure whether we will win against her. But we must try. Because it's worst to give up without a fight than fighting to the death. And still, you can say no to this fight. I-"

"My name is Artix von Krieger!"

All turned. The crowd stared at a man with wild brown hair and an axe in hand. Cape flowing slightly with every moment, he had an arm raised.

"And I stand with you, miss Carla."

After a moment of silence, another voice chimed in. "I am Takashi Shirogane, known as the captain of the warship Atlas. I stand with you, too."

"And I am Eirika, princess of Renais and the right-hand woman to the leader of the city of Cocoon. I stand by you."

Lucy herself strode through the crowd calmly. Somehow, she managed to easily get Carla's attention, who fixated on her with all her might as she waved a careless hand. "Name's Lucy-1. Guardian. I'm pretty sure we'll be with you, lady."

Carla smiled. "Thank you. Thank you all." After a moment, she cleared her throat. "If that's true, you might wish to get acquainted with the people you'll be fighting with."

To do so, someone that reached Ikora's side turned to her. "Hello. My name's Katie Holt, but I like to go by Pidge. I'm the Green Paladin of Voltron."

Ikora dutifully took the hand held out to her and shook it. "Greetings, Pidge. I am Ikora Rey, the Warlock Vanguard."

The man who had first spoke, Artix, laughed heartily, standing next to a man with long, lavender hair. "Greetings, friend! As I said before, I am Artix von Krieger, legendary Paladin!"

"...Cedar," the man simply said, arms crossed.

Despite his body language obviously telling Artix to screw off, he didn't take it and pulled the man into a hug with one arm. "I can tell we'll get along well!"

"I already regret this."

Lucy patted Carla on the back as conversations began to sprout up. "Hey. Thanks for the help, lady. But can I get a little clarification on what exactly you are?"

The two women began walking along. "Well, I'm a chrono angel. We exist outside of the timelines, and act as its protectors."

"Timelines?"

"You are not the only Lucy-1. There are many Lucy-1s, existing in different timelines beyond your reach. Us chrono angels have the ability to travel in between, in, and out of them. The Shadow Queen exists outside the timeline, in the source of darkness itself. The Umbra Mondo."

"And that's outside of this...timeline we exist in?"

"Indeed."

"My head already hurts..." Lucy stopped. "And how did you know my name?"

"...Because I am a chrono angel. We know all."

"You can't be that omnipotent."

"You'll be surprised. For example, I already know this forming resistance will be called the Alliance, the name suggested by you. You would also suggest making a council that runs the resistance."

Lucy scoffed. "You're acting quite high and mighty."

"I get it from my parents."

"Your parents seem very snobbish..."


	2. Broken Crown

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in this chapter:
> 
> -Rowan  
> -Carla  
> -Takumi  
> -Lucy-1  
> -Queen Vuruma of Gristonne  
> -A mystery character
> 
> Chapter Summary:
> 
> When the battle at the Tower was won, where was Rowan? This chapter is dedicated to him making it to the Alliance at his own speed.

Darkness. By now, he was used to all of it. It's all he's been seeing for the past half decade.  
  
The grimy chains on his wrists haven't changed, either. He always woke up to that, which tore on the frames of his arms, synthetic skin torn away by initial struggle. They haven't been removed for years, anchoring him to the wall of the abandoned cell.  
  
His clothes were old and beaten, the same rags he's worn for ages now. Not only that, but his entire body was beaten, stray wires poking out of every limb in his body. Even the smallest amount of water could fry him, now that many core components were exposed.  
  
His name was Rowan, and he failed to save his kingdom. Now, he has not seen a living person in years, left chained up in a cell to slowly die.  
  
Blue danced in the corners of his dull eyes. Barely, he looked up with what little strength still remained in him. Perhaps finally, he was shutting down, being given the sweet release of permanent death that he begged for for the five years locked in the cell caused by betrayal.  
  
Is this what it was like for Reploids to die? New energy seeming to flow in to give one last burst before it all crashes? Rowan let a hand twitch, something it hasn't done in forever. Feeling seemed to slowly rush back into deactivated fingers, and he opened and closed his hands, lightly pulling on the rusting cuffs on them in the process.  
  
A warmth seemed to envelop his body, in a strange manner. Like some presence was there, pulling him into an embrace. This wasn't death. It was more of a...revival.  
  
A woman's voice, registered as familiar in his memory yet fuzzy from the lack of memories connected to it, seemed to ebb in and out. It was soothing, a call for help that he wanted to answer. Rowan's entire soul pulled him to follow the siren's song, but was held back by the many magical wards placed on him to keep him still and silent.  
  
 _"Heroes of all worlds…heed my call…if you hear me…Help a war be fought!"_  
  
Everything burned. The warmth became a white-hot fire, and Rowan screamed. The purple sigils were beginning to appear, and they glowed brighter than he has ever seen them glow. Whatever the voice had, it had power, and the purple almost blinded him as his voice box threatened to give out from years of strain and no repair.  
  
 _"HEED MY CALL!"_  
  
All once, a sheer cold washed over him. It was relieving, the burning sensation leaving in an instant. He could hear something shatter, and opening his eyes, he could see the sigils that had surrounded his body were gone, and glowing purple shards were seen on the ground before fading, too.  
  
What was important is that he could move. Miraculously, new energy had seeped into him, despite the obvious wear and tear to his form. The damage still caused warnings in his vision, but the low energy warnings were gone.   
  
One hand yanked forward with all his might, new courage and hope instilled. Like he had prayed for, the chain came undone in one pull, ripping off of the wall and freeing one hand. There was hope for escape after all.  
  
His other arm was not so lucky. He still was freed, but bit back a scream when instead of his hand tearing out the chain, the chain tore off his hand. It now hung on the wall, wires sprawling out with electric sparks dancing on it. His arm fared no better, the stump where his hand was having mechanical components poking out in a multitude. He has truly seen better days.  
  
For the first time in years, he slowly stood up on two shaky legs. His only hand on the wall, his feet trembled as he pushed them forward to the bars of the imprisonment. His world swam, but he managed to do it, fingers latching on the steel beams.  
  
With a tug, dust was shaken from above. Another yank, and it began to bend under Rowan's grip. Immediately, he nearly ripped out his other hand pulling out the beam, which tore out with a shrieking noise, and was proceeded to be thrown into the back of the cell to be abandoned like he was.  
  
With cautious steps, Rowan emerged from his cell. Already, he could feel a new sense of freedom, even though he had merely escaped the frying pan, and now had to descend into the fire. The first steps of escape have been taken. He just needed to take the rest.  
  
 _Five years ago, Rowan stepped out onto fresh grass. The technological gate he just exited from hummed, eventually dimming when he shut it off with one knob turn. Just like that, the friends he made waving goodbye to him vanished, leaving his sight._  
  
 _The Otherworlder War was now over. Now, he could start working on repairing the kingdom he lost._  
  
 _Slowly, he began to pick his way through the forest. The beaten path was unkept, no signs of use. Plants and foliage have already begun to reclaim the dirt. Nobody's taken this route for a long time._  
  
 _Trying to reach deep into his mind, he wondered which way was home. He was embarrassed to admit his sense of direction has disappeared after his imprisonment, so he'll just say that he's in a part he didn't know. However, he had sure confidence that he just needed to walk around a bit until he found a familiar pathway or road._  
  
 _As he walked along, he decided to think about the more pressing matters. Such as his facial features. The ones he was forced to gain to mark himself as the first Otherworlder Reploid. Idly, he thought whether or not to hide them in some fashion, or show it up front._  
  
 _...No. He can't do that. They'll be scared of him. And then he would lose all hope of trust. Who would believe a Reploid that would walk in and claim he was their long-lost king?_  
  
 _He needed help. From Gristonne. The war between them and Aytolis was over, so it was his best bet._  
  
Now, standing there, he wondered if it truly was.  
  
Rowan could do nothing but push forward. At this point, he's left the dungeons behind. What followed had to be a blood bath, as Gristonne guards tried to stop him. He had to kill them with his hands, with what weapons he had. He regretted every kill, still, enemy or not.  
  
His whipblade was rightfully back in his hand. He found it outside his cell. They were cocky, smug that he would never be able to get out to obtain it. They were sorely mistaken, as now, as it was as bloodsoaked as ever.  
  
Bloody footsteps left behind, the Reploid limped his way down the now empty hall. Occasionally, a small drip of coolant from a thin stream down his arm would drip onto the ground, the black liquid staining the probably expensive carpet. Perhaps it could serve as a constant reminder for the sin dealt to him.  
  
Vuruma. That scum Vuruma. How could she have such an amazing son, yet have the coldest heart...?  
  
 _Rowan sipped the tea given to him. It was more out of politeness, as it pained him that he had no taste buds to taste it. It, like many other things, was removed, deemed unnecessary by Fox._  
  
 _The woman before him seemed to be the origination of Darios's looks. Her hair was as black as his, and even the clothes she wore had the same color scheme. Maybe it was partially on purpose, out of mourning for him. This was his mother, after all._  
  
 _Vuruma sat down. "Hearing all of that...I'm so sorry that all happened to you, King Rowan."_  
  
 _"It was...hard," Rowan admitted. "And it felt like forever. When I escaped, I was surprised only a year went by."_  
  
 _"How...How did you escape?" The queen of Gristonne dared to ask._  
  
 _Rowan pursed his lips, furrowing his brow. "...I...I don't remember, honestly. It's all a blur now, but...It only happened about a few months ago. I guess I never put thought into it. Overall, I hope my...condition...doesn’t frighten you.”_  
  
 _“Not at all. I’m surprised that you transcended from flesh to steel.”_  
  
 _“It was...hard to adjust. Anyways, how is Gristonne? Has it recovered well after the events of Velezark?”_  
  
 _Vuruma cleared her throat before taking a sip of her own tea. “My husband and son, gods bless their souls, have received proper burials. I wish you and your family could have been there.”_  
  
 _Rowan sighed at that. “I wish I was, too. Your son Darios was an amazing friend of mine. He even died protecting us.”_  
  
 _“I’m sorry for your loss.”_  
  
 _"I’m even more sorry for yours. Darios was my friend, but he was your son. After this, may I please visit his grave?"_  
  
 _Vuruma smiled warmly. "I’m sure he would appreciate that."_  
  
 _"Thank you." Rowan began to raise his teacup again._  
  
 _"Now...I am aware of your previous...involuntary employment."_  
  
 _The Reploid paused at that, teacup barely gracing his lips. "...I don’t understand what you mean."_  
  
 _"Of your time as Subject 153."_  
  
 _"That...was a regrettable time."_  
  
 _"How many deaths was it?"_  
  
 _"About 700. Last I checked."_  
  
 _Vuruma held in a gasp, but instead covered her mouth. "You killed 700 people?"_  
  
 _"...Yes. What was worst is that most of them...were innocent people. And to this day, I’m scared that...HE'LL come back and make me do it all again. I’ve really been too busy to remove all of the weapon data."_  
  
 _At that, Vuruma stood up abruptly. Rowan looked a bit confused as her chair clattered to the ground._  
  
 _"Do you need some assistance with removing all that data?"_  
  
 _Rowan smiled. "I’ll gladly take it."_  
  
 _"I’ll return shortly," was Vuruma's response as she hurried out, closing the door behind her._  
  
 _Rowan never saw her again after that. She wasn't there when the guards burst in and dragged him away, kicking and screaming._  
  
Perhaps it was his fault. He scared her. Scared her enough to seal him in a cell and place magical wards on him to prevent any kind of escape.  
  
He's lost a lot of important fluids, now. Heavily breathing, he stumbled down the steps of the castle of Gristonne leading into the city around. His foot caught on the middle step, and rolling, he spent the rest of the way tumbling down, landing in a heap at the end.  
  
It took a great deal to force himself back onto his feet. At this point, he was ready to shut down and give up. But if he did, the cycle would repeat, and perhaps this time, no blue dust would help him.  
  
So he ran. Startling civilians he passed by, he sprinted as fast as he could, even with injured legs. His instincts were right, as before he could turn the corner, he could hear shouts of "Freeze, in the name of the queen!" and things like that. That only meant one thing: Guards.  
  
As he ran, he realized that he had no way to know which path was out. The city was laid out in no familiar way to him, for one thing. Plus, he could hear the guards gaining on him, partly due to his lack of strength and poor condition.  
  
This was it, he dryly remarked. There was no hope for him. He would rot in that cell for all eternity, and nobody would ever be the wi-  
  
A shot rang out, bursting through the air in a loud clap. Immediately, Rowan braked and looked over his shoulder. A guard was going down in a shower of blood. Another bang, and the one next to him, shocked into stillness like the king was, went down, too.  
  
Rowan was frozen still. People around him began to scream, babies wailing. Doors were slammed open and close, and footsteps drowned out every other noise in his audio sensors.  
  
Except one thing. A voice, that seemed to identify a man about in his early thirties or so. They were clearly shouting over the commotion, but even then, Rowan had just dumb luck hearing them.  
  
"What are you waiting for, kid?! Keep running!"  
  
Rowan's head tilted up. There was a flash of light from a gun muzzle, and a third bang, causing even more pandemonium.  
  
"Are you talking to me?" Rowan questioned, and realized just how damaged his voice box was.  
  
"Yea, I'm talking to you! Great Viajero, it's like you're not even listening!"  
  
"I've been imprisoned for half a decade, what am I supposed to say?!"  
  
"Just follow me!" Cloak flying, the figure turned on their heel and started sprinting across the rooftops, constantly flickering in and out of Rowan's blurry vision.  
  
Immediately, Rowan slammed a foot forward. Once again resuming his injured sprint, he followed the figure effortlessly flying across rooftops. As Rowan tailed behind, they took a turn every now and then, or stopped and took a shot that Rowan checked to see that, indeed, it once more has landed a shot on a soldier, who now laid dead in the street. The figure's shot was truly impeccable.  
  
Slowly, the houses began to fill out. Rowan's heart lept with joy, knewing that meant freedom, which was once an impossible dream, was just there.  
  
"Just keep going straight ahead!" Rowan looked up at the figure pointing forward, who at this point has a strange blue glow to them. "You've got enough space between you and the guards! Once you hit the forest, go to the gate that connects this world with the others, and go to the first world selected!"  
  
"What about you?" Rowan yelled in return.  
  
The glow grew brighter, outlining the figure and muddling their features more than Roan already saw them. "I'll wish you luck!" was the last he heard of the man before he seemed to explode in blue dust, leaving little trace he was even there to begin with. That seemed to certainly prove to Rowan that he had something to do with Rowan's escape.  
  
But he couldn't think about that, now. He had to once more resume his pace, less he want them to catch up with him. He had a slim chance of escape, and he must move fast to make it.  
  
Nobody stopped him in between where he was now and the last of the houses making up the city. Every gate was open, signs of being forced open shown. Whoever that man was, he planned the escape well, only to mysteriously leave in the climax of it all. His savior raised more questions than answers, but this was not a moment to attempt to answer the questions.  
  
Finally, he burst into the green mass of the forest. Tripping once more, he rolled into the bushes, dirtying himself even more than he already was. He quickly forced himself back onto feet that nearly skidded out under him, and continued on, trying to trust what data he had left of before his long imprisonment to guide him.  
  
The road was even more overgrown than before. Only small patches of brown here and there told him that it used to be a road. Seeing the extreme lack of use, Rowan put faith in the forest and took the consumed path as his exit.  
  
There it was. The gate. He had not seen it for years. It looked as old as him. Would it even work?  
  
To his relief, he found that it would. Despite it not being in its prime, after a few sputters, it clicked online, the familiar shimmer of blue signalling the portal was opening.  
  
Looks like the man did tamper with it. When Rowan lowered his arms from his eyes, he could not identify the strange city that he could see through the portal. It didn't look like any of the other worlds he has heard of. The city was wide and expansive, with a large orb hanging over it, threatening to drop and crush it all in an instant.  
  
Rowan hesitated, but only for a moment. He wished to return to what home he had. The Cocoon, where he could get true help. And yet, something called him to that city. Call it instinct, but it felt more of fate.  
  
So he ran in, planning to not return.  
  
He could remember running the rest of the way to the city. Legs pounding the dirt and entire being aching because of the lack of any sort of movement over the past five years, he willed himself to keep going. Find help.  
  
Somehow, some miracle allowed him to make it safely. Nobody chased him. Nobody shot at him. Only he accompanied himself to the gates of the city.  
  
He doesn't remember much of what happened next. Yes, he collapsed. Yes, he could see people running to him. And yes, he could hear gunfire. But besides that...nothing. Nothing but a slumber that he feared would be eternal.  
  
"Rise and shine, old friend."  
  
"Eyes up."  
  
With a pained groan, Rowan did indeed force his eyes open. What almost would have given him a splitting migraine was that he could see clearly. His eyes were repaired almost completely.  
  
He laid on a...bed. Yes. A bed. He hasn't been on one in ages. The bed was currently in what had to be a medical wing, judging by how the walls were blindingly white, yet a welcome change to the dark and moldy interior of his cell.  
  
On both of his sides were familiar faces. Takumi leaned back in a chair, arms crossed and tilting his head to stare at Rowan. A woman that looked too old to be Liberty, yet had the unmistakable features of her left scarred eye, the colors of magenta, black, and white, and that one strand of hair poking up on top of her head, was in an even more careless position, cheek on her knee, yet still smirking at him.  
  
"...T-Takumi?" Rowan found it hard to recall their names at first, but managed to force it out. "Princess Liberty?"  
  
"Long time no see, Rowan." Takumi flashed a grin.  
  
The woman herself lifted her head. "Hey, what’s up? I’m Lucy-1. But, according to you guys, I used to go by Liberty."  
  
"What are you guys...doing here?" Rowan made an aimless gesture.  
  
"Well...You can say the Otherworlder War didn’t truly end." Takumi looked down. "It just had a little lunch break. We’re back in a war, and on a much larger scale."  
  
"What happened to you?" Lucy questioned.  
  
"...You can say...That I failed in repairing Aytolis."  
  
"I'm sorry. What happened?"  
  
Rowan gained a more bitter, sudden tone. "I'll rather not."  
  
Takumi flinched. "I take it the royal life didn’t treat you well, judging by your tone."  
  
"I had a bit of a bad time during my return. Everything was ruined and I just can’t keep up the nice-guy act."  
  
"Couldn’t we all...? Heh, heh..."  
  
Lucy raised an eyebrow. "What’s so funny?"  
  
"Look at us. We used to be a prince, a princess, and a king. Now, five years later...We’re a well-known mercenary and assassin, the fifth Hunter Vanguard, and...well..."  
  
"A killing machine," Rowan dryly answered.  
  
"Yea. We’re different people. Way more different than last we met."  
  
"That’s not a necessarily bad thing," Lucy pointed out. "Change is change, not particularly good or bad. It’s just change."  
  
"And we haven’t tried and killed each other yet, so I can safely presume we’re still friends," Takumi agreed. "Or at least on good terms. Look at us. We’re even more of a mess than we were in in the Otherworlder War."  
  
"We lived this long. We’ll live some more."  
  
The young mercenary looked back at Rowan. "So, you feeling alright, Rowan? If you do, I want to get you out of those rags. They look absolutely uncomfortable."  
  
"I’m okay." Rowan nodded. Now that he was aware of it, he felt a lot better than he did before.  
  
"Alright, then. Let’s go." Takumi nudged his head as an invitation.  
  
The three, one by one, got up on their feet. Rowan noted that he was the shortest out of all three of them, though he swore for a fact that last they met, he was taller than both of them. After making sure the boy was good on his feet, they filed out the door.  
  
Rowan's jaw would have popped off if it wasn't on tight. What he saw all around him took his breath away. People of different kinds of technologies buzzed around the area, talking to others that seemed to be from completely different backgrounds. A dark-skinned boy in blue and white armor seemed to be flirting with a woman with a purple bun, who barely responded to him, but waved slightly goodbye when somebody in nearly identical armor, only red instead of blue, pulled him away.  
  
Lucy noticed Rowan gaping. "Yea. We meant a much larger scale."  
  
"This is..."  
  
Rowan never finished his sentence, as he froze in his tracks. Just passing by them was a woman with a brown bobcut, white coat with blue designs trailing behind her. She paid them no heed, not even noticing Rowan watching her with a starstruck expression.  
  
"...You okay?" Takumi questioned.  
  
"She is...beautiful..."  
  
Lucy followed Rowan's gaze. "Oh, Carla? Yea. She’s the one that showed us the existence of the current big bad, and is currently helping us fight her. She’s a big help."  
  
"Uh huh..." Rowan started to follow her.  
  
Takumi tried to stop him. "Dude, don't talk to her looking like-"  
  
"Excuse me!" The chrono angel stopped, and looked over at him, a finger still on her chin. "Excuse m-"  
  
Rowan's foot caught under him, and he tumbled forward. He immediately slammed into Carla, sending them both crashing into the ground. He landed on top of her with a grunt of pain, only to quickly sit up.  
  
"Ow...Well, that hurt. Are you o-?"  
  
Rowan was cut off by Carla summoning her lance and smacking him in the side of the face with it. He went flying from the sheer force before skidding along on the ground, face directly on the floor.  
  
The woman stood up, brandishing her lance. "Who let some sort of filth-covered child into the Tower to assault me?!"  
  
Lucy covered her face with a hand. "That would be...us..."  
  
Takumi shrugged. "I told him to stop. Carla, meet Rowan, the king of Aytolis."  
  
"...THAT is a king?"  
  
"Shocking, ain't it?"


	3. Severed Ties

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in this chapter:
> 
> -Takumi  
> -Leo  
> -Cedar  
> -Carla  
> -Rowan  
> -Ryoma and Sakura (mentioned)  
> -Hinoka  
> -Amanda
> 
> Chapter Summary:
> 
> Even after five years, Takumi and Leo still have unresolved tension between them, not helped by their relationship forming, then almost immediately breaking apart. Leo wishes to know a time where Takumi chose his home instead of the mercenary life, and convinces Carla to show him.

With a few strokes, the pen glided across the paper on the clipboard. With a few markings made here and there, Takumi scribbled as he stood in the Tower's hangar. Every once and a while, he could stop and click the pen button in a habitual manner, as if he was thinking of what he wrote, before writing some more.

He muttered under his breath, furrowing his brow. "Mission status complete...but no sign of her..." He sighed. "As always..."

As he worked, he looked up occasionally. Everyone has gotten much more settled into the drastic change of environment. That included moving in familiar pieces of technology, one being the gates that were created to connect the worlds. Currently, they were being engineered to connect to the new worlds with the help of many, but for now, they were limited.

Right now, he could see the gate was turning on. Ignoring it, he put aside the now-completed clipboard. There was still plenty to do, such as clean out his rifle and make sure no malfunctions were in his arm.

"Does any one of you know where Takumi is, by any chance?"

Takumi froze completely at that voice, which somehow registered as familiar despite not being heard in years. "Oh, crap. It’s my ex."

Indeed, out of the portal came a young man in his mid-twenties, just like Takumi. His golden hair was slightly longer than it was last they met, but still held back by a black headband. Besides that, he still looked the same he did, despite the obvious development of his face from a young man to an adult's.

As Leo tapped a clawed hand on his lip in thought, Lucy glanced over at him while smirking. "Leo. Prince of Nohr. Am I right? I know I am. Lucy-1, Hunter Vanguard. But you may remember me as...?"

"Liberty. Princess of the Mavericks."

"Yea, so by now, I go by either. What’s your business with this humble Alliance?" Lucy gestured around, still leaning on the wall by her elbow.

"I’m looking for Takumi. The mercenary. I heard he was here."

"Uh, you know what?" Behind her, Takumi almost broke down the door running out by opening it with his shoulder. "He just left."

Leo rolled his eyes at this display of childishness. "Do find him. I want to talk with him."

"Got it..." Lucy shuffled off.

Not too far from there, Takumi launched himself through the air, and miraculously made a slam dunk into an empty crate. He poked his upper body out to find the lid of the crate.

Cedar, who was sitting nearby, looked at him with a baffled expression. "What are you doing, kid?"

"I’m not here. Leo’s here."

Cedar looked around. "You mean the ex?"

Takumi scowled. "What do you THINK?"

"He’s looking for you, isn't he?"

Takumi, finally finding the lid, slid it on. "I’m not here, if he asks."

"...Ooookay," Cedar said before noticing out of the corner of his vision the cause of Takumi's worry. "Hello, prince of Nohr."

Leo entered, a hand gliding smoothly on the doorway. "Hello, Cedar. Have you seen your partner?"

"Nope, neither Dynamo or Takumi," the sniper replied. "Sorry."

"Well, where is he?" Leo seemed to ponder, walking around the room. "He's not cowardly enough to hide in a crate, is he? Or is he in the crate next to you?"

"...DAMMIT!" Takumi could be heard from inside.

"There you are." Leo went over to the crate, beginning to move aside the lid.

Takumi knocked it off with what was probably the full force of his head, letting it clatter to the side. "I’m out." He floored it, bolting out of the room.

Leo began to follow him. "Thank you, Cedar."

"You're...welcome?" Cedar answered, obviously baffled by the thanks.

Leo quickly underestimated Takumi's speed and agility. After all, he has spent the past half decade or so practically running from the law. It was no wonder how Takumi could easily keep his distance from the relatively smaller built mage.

Speaking of, the only thing that stopped Taumi was Leo's arcane abilities. With one gesture, Takumi's gravity was altered enough to slam into the ground with no way to get back up.

Leo walked over to the mercenary on the end. "I would like to say I am still disappointed that you abandoned your honor for the sake of the profit of bounty hunting."

"It was NOT for bounty hunting," Takumi growled.

"You had an option to stay home," Leo retorted, releasing his clenched fist.

Takumi got up, groaning a bit. "Really...I doubt that."

"You would be a great king, Takumi."

"With the condition I am in now? No." Takumi gestured to his left shoulder. "I have a metal arm physically ingrained into my body. Do you truly think the people would trust a guy with a metal arm to be a king?"

Leo started, "Takumi-"

"I had to. Get it through your head."

"There are people more important than you."

Takumi's scowl deepened. "Funny. That’s exactly what I thought when I made my choice."

"Takumi..."

The mercenary replied by pushing him aside. Marching off, he rolled his shoulder, something he probably banged when he was forced onto the floor. Leo only watched him go, not moving to stop him.

Slowly, he began to leave the area. He's done all that he wished to do here.

Inside the hangar, he noticed Takumi exchange nods and a friendly smile with a woman. She was unfamiliar to him, perhaps one of the many otherworlders that made up the population of the Tower now.

Slowly, Leo found a comfortable spot against the wall, too. He pressed two fingers on the bridge of his nose, sighing. "I wished Takumi was still at Hoshido. Without him, it's quiet."

"You mean the mercenary?" Carla spoke up, looking at Leo.

Leo was a bit hesitant to talk to the stranger at first. "...Takumi may be a mercenary, but to me, he will always be the second prince of Hoshido. Life would be much simpler if he had stayed home."

"He’s a prince?"

"Yes. He is one of the four siblings of Hoshido, though two of his siblings were lost, due to that monster Fox taking one and killing another. Thankfully, he is dead, now."

"Hm. I didn’t know that." Carla shrugged.

Leo sighed. "I wish I somehow had an opportunity to see the time that Takumi made the choice to follow me back home. Hoshido would have progressed much more greatly with him back home."

"Be careful what you wish for," Carla replied. "Time is not something to tool with."

"Aren't you the philosopher."

Carla raised her arm, and it glowed blue from her veins lighting a bright cyan underneath. "I have my fair share of time travel. I could be what you may call a chronomancer."

"Then...I want to see the moment Takumi chose to follow me. Please. I need to know what would happen."

Carla scowled. "No. Time is not a toy."

"I will only have one look, I promise," Leo pleaded.

"I said no." Carla began to leave, pushing off of the wall she was leaning against.

"Please!" Leo called after her. "What can I do to convince you?"

"Nothing. I am not easily willed. You must realize that leaves grow off of branches."

"Huh?"

Carla turned back. "Some events will never happen if an earlier one didn’t. A classic example of the domino effect. If Takumi never became a mercenary, making a branch on this tree of a timeline, imagine what will not have happened, and what leaves grew instead."

"But I need to know. I want to go back to the moment I gave Takumi the choice to stay or come with me."

"And what will you give me in return, if anything?"

Leo looked around the Tower. Carla obviously seemed like a lady that was hard to please. What could there be to possibly please her, if there even was anything?

The mage noticed her staring at something and followed her gaze. There, in the corner of the Tower, Rowan, now wearing more modern clothing, kept giggling at what must have been a personal joke. He kept flexing his hands and pulling up and down the hood on his jacket. He looked almost insane doing it.

Leo made a smile, as if he had cracked the code. "Some time with Rowan."

Carla looked almost disgusted. "You mean the same person that somehow is a king and has been drooling all over me?"

"Yes."

"Why do you think I would value my time with a fool like him? He’s entertaining himself with a jacket hood. Why do you think that is a worthy present in return of screwing around with time?"

"Human instincts. Much like romantic feelings and selfish desires."

Carla took a deep breath, then exhaled. She then looked at Rowan, then back at Leo, as if she was making a difficult decision. Finally, she groaned, and stuck out an arm. "Take my hand."

Obviously knowing he's won, Leo reached a hand out. He clasped her glove, his ebony black a contrast to her white and bright blue.

Slowly, Carla began to glow brighter, almost blindingly. The large wings that she has displayed before unfolded from her back, forming out of thin air. With two fingers positioned in front of her face, she closed her eyes while Leo had to squeeze his shut to make sure he didn't go blind.

When he opened them again, he let out a gasp. Without him even knowing, they were in a completely new area.

The two were surrounded by a nebula of stars set out against the blue void of space. Ripples in the middle of the air shimmered up and down the line made of stars they walked on. While there were obvious gaps in the custom road, not only did they do their job, Leo couldn't even feel the gap. As if a barrier coated over the small pinpricks of light.

"What in the Dusk Dragon is this?!" The prince shot onto his feet.

"These are the Walkways. The bridge in between timelines. It’s been my second home for as long as I remember." Carla once more placed her fingers before her face. "Now, what we will see is not a timeline. Instead, I will forge a vision of what could have been. Only the kingdom of Hoshido will exist, and while other worlds can be spoken of, it will be impossible for us to go there. And none of the people you will see are real. It will only instead be an illusion. What you may see could or could not affect you. Are you sure of this choice, Prince Leo?"

Leo did not hesitate in answering. "I accept the choice."

Around them, white spread out across the blue space, letting the two stand in the blinding color. Slowly, splashes of red and pink began to appear, too. It seemed a whole world was being birthed in this moment, slowly constructed out of the cosmos itself.

Leo could recognize the forming area as Hoshido grounds. To the left, he noticed the castle of Shirasagi in the distance. Just to the right was one of the many technological gates beginning to kickstart online, humming and casting out its blue glow.

Carla and Leo watched as an illusion of Leo and Takumi, five years ago, stepped out of the portal. While they were holding hands, Takumi's left arm was still missing, something that struck the prince as odd.

"Where is his arm?" Leo looked at Carla.

"Don’t you remember?" She answered. "He lost it."

"Yes, but...A mechanical arm replaced it."

"Out of fear of the reaction of his subjects, he never would have. He would remain with only one arm, never to wield a weapon properly again."

Before Leo could respond, Carla waved a hand. Immediately, the scene shifted, and so did the smell. It changed to one Leo could identify as burning incense, which meant some sort of important gathering.

 

And so indeed. The world shifted into dusk, the last of the sun's rays hitting the courtyard they now stood in. What laid before the two was a memorial service, with numerous flowers laid before and all around it. Two pictures were lit by the many candles on the small steps leading up to the picture frames.

 

Leo picked up one, recognizing the delicate girl framed in it. "While I understand Ryoma's picture, I remember the real memorial service. Sakura's picture was not on it."

 

Carla walked forward a few steps to be at his side. "If Takumi did not stay, Sakura would never had a chance of being found to begin with. Already, your choice has let a second sibling perish."

 

"...W-Well...Sakura was turned into a Reploid. And hasn't been seen for five years. She...had no hope anyways."

 

"But Takumi has." Carla raised a hand again, swiping it to the side and letting the illusion meld away to make a new one. "Judging by the psychological condition of him before, during, and after the war, he would not last long."

 

"What are you-" Leo cut himself off by screaming, clamping a hand over his mouth. His eyes widening, tears already began to pour out.

 

Takumi was in the midst of driving a katana into his chest with his only arm. On his knees in front of a small shrine, he only was upright for another second before thudding to the ground. The fast-spreading crimson blood stained the pure white kimono, making a pool around his body.

 

Carla was practically unfazed by it all. "Takumi would become king, yes. But without an arm, he is as useful as a broken paper clip. He lost everything in the war. And he has no hope of going forward, as he has lost all sources of light to the future." She walked forward, boot barely grazing the lifeless body. "A broken man like him has no hope of becoming king."

 

"...No..." Leo whimpered. It almost came out as a sob. "No, I can't...You have to be lying, he couldn't..."

 

"While he is still away from his home in our timeline, he would visit. To make sure Hinoka knew he was still okay, and that it was a family choice. She partook in choosing his fate, like he himself did."

 

"Hinoka...agreed?"

 

"It was not a plan by Takumi's doing alone. You thought he wouldn't tell her. You thought he abandoned her and his home for the daredevil life. You are not only selfish, you are truly stubborn and foolish, prince Leo."

 

It was like Leo's chest was slowly being crushed. It became hard to breath. One hand was still glued tight to his mouth, and he clutched his stomach, as if he was about to vomit. Tears poured down his face heavily, and he had gone a sickly pale.

 

"Take us back," he finally forced out.

 

Carla scoffed, tilting her head. "Back? I thought you didn't want that future."

 

"After seeing...this...it's the only future I desire."

 

"Did I not tell you?" Still, the illusion faded from Leo's eyes, though it stayed in his mind, and returned to the nebula of stars that was the Walkways.

 

The prince looked up at the chrono angel. "Which way is home?"

 

"Take my hand, and we'll return to it as if we never left."

 

Indeed, it was like they never did. As soon as the light from Carla's spell faded, Leo noticed exactly everything was the way they left it. It was like they had all been frozen in time, only to move again when they returned.

 

He immediately began to run off, leaving Carla in the dust. While the chrono angel was surprised by his sudden departure, she did not let it show. Instead, she walked off to resume her normal activities, only allowing herself once to wonder where Leo was going.

 

"Hey, 'Manda."

 

Amanda looked up from her desk to see the young mercenary walk by her. "Oh hey, Tak. How's ya latest hunt?"

 

"No results. As per usual."

 

Leo watched from the entrance as Amanda sighed. "You'll find ya sister. Someday."

 

"I hope. But thinking on it, I'm actually scared what to do when I find her."

 

"Explain, please." The woman frowned, beginning to look concerned.

 

"Well, say that she's still under Maverick control. What will I do to snap her out of it, if I can even do anything? And if I do succeed in that, there's the question if I will remain a mercenary, or return to my kingdom. Either way, I am abandoning what I have grown to know as family, and losing a part of myself. Even then, I know someday, I'll need to make that choice, even if I find Sakura or not. I just don't want to."

 

Leo bit down on his armored knuckle, feeling queasy. "I was mad at him...For him just wanting to find his sister."

 

Neither noticing the young blonde, Amanda patted Takumi on the shoulder. "When ya do make that choice, know you'll still find family."

 

"...Thanks." Takumi began heading off.

 

Takumi let his mind wander as he moved throughout the Tower. His options were becoming more and more limited by the day. The places to look may have grown significantly, but he's been doubling back too much. He now seemed to have no other choice but to fling himself into what he didn't know for any chance to find his sister.

 

He didn't notice he was walking with no destination in mind until he was tapped on the shoulder and informed that he should probably retire to bed. Realizing it was now nighttime, Takumi gave the woman a quick thank you and hurried off to his temporary quarters.

 

The Tower had little to spare in choice of rooms, so Takumi had found himself in a tiny room filled with nothing but old, abandoned files. There was a small part of a corner where water dripped in, indicated by the growing moss. The only things that said it was a bedroom were the sniper rifle case against the wall and a hammock on the other side, only two steps away from the door.

 

In a usual routine, Takumi began to dismantle his rifle and place the parts accordingly in the box. Once that was done, he set it aside and moved to his hammock.

 

Before he hopped in, he stopped. On the hammock, a long, thin box was placed. It was a simple crate, with no identification on any side. Picking it up, he found there was no locking or sealing mechanism either. Curiosity getting the better of him, he opened the box.

 

Inside made him gasp. It was the legendary bow Fujin Yumi, as clean and polished as he remembered it. The last time he held it was before the Otherworlder War, years and years ago.

 

He pulled it out, hands trembling as if it would turn to dust in them. It felt so familiar to touch, yet strange in the hands now calloused from the cold handle of a sniper rifle. When was the last time he had used a bow in the world of technology to survive?

 

Putting that thought aside, he let his gaze go to what was also inside the box. A slip of paper was nestled in, beautiful cursive detailed on it. He pinched it delicately between two fingers and pulled it out to stare at it.

 

After skimming it over, he smiled, a blush creeping onto his face. Setting aside the box, he fell neatly into the hammock, a smile forming on his face.

 

Tomorrow, he decided. He'll talk to Leo tomorrow, and perhaps, judging by the contents of the note, do a little more than just speak.


	4. The Hunter Vanguard

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in this chapter:
> 
> -Lucy-1  
> -Zavala  
> -Axl  
> -Gefangene (mentioned)
> 
> Chapter Summary:
> 
> Lucy-1 meets a friend from her time as Liberty, and goes on a trip down memory lane with him.

"Lucy-1! You are here for the position all Hunters look up to. You will become their leader. You will guide the pack through their hunt. Through gun and knife, you will guide others to do the same. Look at your people, and they will see you as the next Hunter Vanguard."

Once Lucy made sure Zavala was finished speaking, she waved from her position next to him on the elevated platform. This elected a bout of cheers from the Guardians and other various people watching, and a round of applause to burst out, too. A small shade of pink developed on her face, but it was easy to miss.

No more was it simply Lucy-1. Now, it was Lucy-1, the fifth Hunter Vanguard.

The celebration was a blur to her, probably because there was no reason to remember it. Many of the people there congratulated her, and she could identify most of them as new people who were probably there out of respect, not out of their relationship towards her. Regardless, she thanked most of the people that praised her for her new role, but quickly left, finding no reason to stay.

Navigating slowly, Lucy found herself standing at her new station. She's been there frequently since she became a Guardian, even staying there with Cayde occasionally. Now, it was only hers, yet she could still imagine her husband against it, whistling or humming one of those tunes that carried around often.

Before she could enter it, a voice chirped up from behind her. "How's the job, princess?"

Startled, Lucy let out a small yelp, and spun on her heel. Of course, it was one of the new people behind her. Crossed arms, dumb grin, X scar on his face...Judging by Takumi's descriptions of who had been her close friends, she already had a feeling who this one was.

"Um...Sorry. Still not familiar with the new guys. Bit of a rush, you know?" Lucy drummed her fingers against her arm. "I take it you're...Axl?"

"Takumi told you about me?" He confirmed her thoughts with a stupid smile.

"Yea. And that the fact you had a hopeless crush on me."

"Well...Back then, you weren't a popular gunslinger with a husband and a kid, so it wasn't hopeless back then..." Axl shrugged a shoulder.

"Wonderful..." Lucy rolled her eyes before entering her station, not looking at the Maverick Hunter. "Can I talk to the smarter one?"

"He's not keen on talking right now, so I'll let him be. It disturbs a lot of people when he comes out."

The new Hunter Vanguard began pushing aside old files, aiming for the trash. "About the whole color scheme?"

"Well, I WILL say it scares people when my armor suddenly turns white and purple, so yes. Partly that. But it also scares people when my voice drops an octave or two, my handwriting magically repairs itself, and my eyes turn red, so there's also that."

"Didn't he used to be a murderous virus?" Lucy questioned, watching stained papers fly into the trash bin from being pushed by her arm.

"Enslaved virus," Axl retorted. "There's a huge difference in between murderous and enslaved."

Lucy finally managed to see table underneath the old stack of a mess. "So, you used to be my friend?"

Somehow, that made Axl laugh. "Princess, you were friends with everybody, and I am not kidding. If it moved, you befriended."

For some odd reason, a giggle bubbled out of Lucy's throat. "It sounds like I was pretty naïve."

"And that's what everyone liked about you. Despite it all, you kept your head up. It was hard for even me to do that." For a moment, the Hunter seemed to be lost in his own world. "Though you were a handful. If you weren't naïve, you were gullible and curious. Those two traits in one person spell disaster, don't you know?"

"I guess I should," Lucy answered, not trying to hide the smile. "But I meant friend, as in...a best friend. A close one."

Axl seemed to ponder on that. "Well...Nobody was as close to you as Lumine was, even if he didn't admit it. But...I think you could call us closer than normal friends, just not best friends. Like...Like good friends, y'know?"

Lucy raised an eyebrow at that. "Lumine?"

"Takumi didn't tell you?"

"No. He said that I'll figure out eventually."

The gunslinger groaned. "Classic little merc...Well, Lumine had been with you for as long as you remembered. In the place you called home, he was your only friend outside of your family."

The Hunter Vanguard frowned at that. "My home...What was my home like?"

"...Well..." Axl struggled with words in that moment. "Um...It's...Well, I shouldn't really say it. I should show it."

The woman looked at him with a hint of surprise in her expression. "Show me? Do you have a picture of it with you?"

"I'm sorry if this sounds weird, but...I want to take you back. To your home, to all the places you've gone to that have happy memories...There's only, like, two, but...Maybe you'll regain your memories if you go there!" Axl rubbed the back of his neck. "Do you think that you're up for it, Hunter Vanguard?"

Lucy thought for a moment, scrunching up her brow. With a finger on her chin in a questioning manner, she ran over the proposal in her head. While it did sound like a date, Axl obviously respected that she had a family, and probably just wanted to show her places that she loved.

"...Okay." Lucy shrugged, walking over to Axl. "Where to, first?"

"Well, hold on." Axl raised a finger to stop her. When she did, he rummaged around. "I think I have it right...here!"

In one hand, he held a small, red stick. Lucy looked confused, then amazed when it suddenly extended into a full-fledged scythe. He spun it a few times, then held it out.

"This was yours, princess."

Lucy slowly took it. "You've had it?"

"I was the one that found it lying around after you vanished. I just didn't want to throw it out or give it away."

Once they went through the gate, what was first was the technological empire of Abel City. With tall buildings that extended high into the sky, and one in the distance going beyond the clouds and into space itself, Lucy felt like an ant in comparison.

What got her even more self-aware was the amount of people. Never in all of her life has she seen streets as cramped as this. It was a steady stream of faces she has never seen before. So, the result was her constantly clinging to Axl, afraid to lose him while they walked.

Axl laughed at this. "Scared?"

"No, it's just I've never seen so many people in one place before. It's a bit jarring, if you ask me."

Once more, Axl laughed at her remark. "Don't get out often?"

"No, it's just the Last City probably doesn't even get close to the population of Abel City."

The gunner's laughing faltered. "W-Wait, but it's the last city in your world."

"Yea, doesn't mean it's full of people."

His happiness faded altogether, showing a serious tone. "You're really in that bad of a situation?"

Lucy shrugged. "Pretty much, unfortunately." She looked away. "This place seems so lively and bright. It almost hurts my eyes, y'know?"

"You can...joke about your home's condition?"

"It's the only condition I've known. It used to be better, but then a large empire nearly wiped us off the map. That was just a year ago."

"And you're...okay with that?"

"Can't imagine any other place to live."

Axl seemed obviously worried, but knew he couldn't do much. Bad or not, the Last City has been Lucy's home for as long as she remembered. Even more, with her new role, she had a duty, a responsibility to help take care of it. So, he spoke no more on the matter and led her on.

Most of their time there, Lucy found no familiarity before. In fact, she was a bit warded off by all of the fancy-looking cafes. She kept questioning Axl how they have managed to keep them so clean and pure white. Eventually, they didn't even have lunch, instead Lucy forgetting about food altogether and pulling away Axl to investigate how the buildings were so tall.

Of course, one she kept pointing out was the one in the numerous posters hanging around, that went up high into the clouds and didn't stop. Axl didn't answer her at first, but eventually gave in to her repeated questions about it.

"That's the Jakob Elevator, Hunter Vanguard."

"The...Jakob Elevator?"

"Yea. It WAS a project to get humans up to the moon to colonize it."

Lucy frowned. "Couldn't they have just used spaceships? Instead of a large building?"

"We don't have spaceships, so...We did what we could. But the project was shut down, after an...incident. It's nothing related to you, so I don't see reason why you should investigate too much into it."

"...Yea...Got it." Lucy nodded.

They didn't do much in Abel City after that. Lucy, at this point, has lost interest in it all, and Axl noticed. There was no hope for her memories here, so he decided to go to the other place he promised.

Her home fortress was even more overgrown than last he had gone to it. Once, five years ago, those walls they had sieged to save their friends had stood tall. Now, signs of mold and decay were plain as day, with loose bricks and rubble cluttering the ground.

Lucy walked towards the entrance. The metal doors were all rusted, and one hinge was broken. Slowly, she reached out and placed a hand on the metal.

"I...lived here?"

"Your entire life, as far as we know. You never left it until the whole war really got going, and was known to the masses."

Lucy looked back. "Wait, so it was some sort of...secret war?"

"Yea...It was being fought for about a year before we really knew there was even a war. That whole year, there was a whole...slave trade of otherworlders, you could call it. Well, kind of a slave trade. All otherworlders were captured with one fate in mind: to be turned into one of us."

"You mean a Reploid?" The Hunter Vanguard questioned.

"Yea. They were called Otherworlder Reploids. Some could wield magic due to their human inheritance, some even had a beast form. Whatever it was, they all were destined for that fate until the war ended."

"And I just...sat in the fortress, not doing anything about it?"

"Well, you didn't know. And it wasn't like you couldn't leave. After all, the mastermind was in the fortress with you, practically holding you prisoner in your own home."

Both of them stayed silent, Echo hovering in between both of them. A flash of light here and there indicated she was scanning the area, most likely out of either curiosity or boredom.

"I don't like it here."

Axl looked surprised. "You don't?"

"I have this really bad feeling about the place. Maybe it's meant to be left alone."

The hunter grinned. "You're sounding quite mature, for someone who's technically only six years old."

"I was only one year old when the war happened and I vanished?!" Lucy exclaimed. "Man, I must have missed a lot of the good stuff!"

"Well...some of the things that happened in the past are best if not experienced at all."

It took them no time to leave. With Axl on his rocket boots and Lucy bringing out her sparrow, they quickly left, obviously heading back to the Tower. Perhaps there, Lucy's feeling of being watched could ebb away in the warm feeling of home, surrounded by friends and allies.

Or maybe perhaps if they had entered, they would have been able to see what horrors would await the forming Alliance.


	5. Personality Disorder

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in this chapter:
> 
> -Axl/Gefangene  
> -Pidge  
> -Hunk
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> Pidge meets a new friend, and Axl shares what happened to him over those five years of peace.

****Axl was practically an enigma to Pidge. He would be acting one way one minute, then do a complete 180 in his personality the next. At this point, you could tell her he had dissociative identity disorder, and she would believe you.

The young man usually was cocky and arrogant. While at certain times he would show a more serious side of him, he would constantly get on people's nerves rather than make friends with them. Due to that, he obviously would get along well with the more crude Guardians, especially Hunters.

However, at certain times, he would change, though rarely. With his eyes turning completely scarlet red, and his color scheme transitioning entirely to white and purple, he would adopt a more wise personality. He would speak calmly, and show irritation at any childish behavior. His handwriting would change to a more elegant cursive instead of chicken scratch. Most peculiar of all, his voice would actually drop an octave to a more deeper, proper voice.

What got at her the most was that while most people were off-put by it, his friends did not do a single thing about it. In fact, they welcomed the mysterious second personality, who treated them as a friend just as Axl did. They even called it a different name, Gefangene.

Dissociative identity disorder was not one to wave off. In fact, if it continued, Pidge had no doubt there could possibly be cases of self-harm or even suicide.

"Well, why don't you ask him about it?"

Pidge looked up at Hunk putting away various cooking utensils, a bowl of cake batter on the table now covered in flour. Both of them were in an empty room recently renovated into a kitchen, though not many people used it.

"Ask him? About his second identity? Wouldn't that be...awkward?"

"Well, I bet he's been asked about it a lot," Hunk retorted, an eyebrow raised in a 'I know I'm right' manner. "In fact, I asked him the other day."

Pidge looked flabbergasted at this. "You what?!"

"I did. And he took no offense to it. In fact, I even got to talk to Gefangene."

That got an even stronger reaction. "SERIOUSLY?!"

"Yes. He's surprisingly a very nice person. Much more polite than Axl is. You should talk to him."

Pidge paused at that. Talking to the separate identity? She had no idea how to even hold a normal conversation with somebody who shares the same body as a friend of hers. The fact alone that Axl was both a friend and a stranger to her weirded her out already.

Somehow, she found herself going through the Tower, looking for him. For whatever reason, she finally decided to speak to this "Gefangene" and possibly find a way to help Axl's condition.

Eventually, she found him on the rooftop of the Tower. Chewing on what had to be some sort of energy bar for Reploids, he was paying absolutely no attention to the world around him. Instead, he stared up into the sky, watching the occasional ship of a Guardian fly by.

Pidge knocked on the wall, making her presence known to him. "Can I join you?"

Axl looked back and smiled. "Pidge! I don't mind. Get comfy."

The small girl sat down, indeed trying to get as comfortable as she could. While there was no seating, she simply sat on the edge by Axl, letting her feet dangle in the air.

Absentmindedly, he cracked his knuckles. "I presume you're here for a reason?"

Pidge looked slightly surprised. "How did you know?"

"You never seek out somebody unless you want some information or object from them," Axl replied. "So, what is it?"

"Well...I've been wanting to talk to Gefangene. Your second personality."

For whatever reason, this actually confused him. "Wait, second personality?"

"Yea. Obviously, you have dissociative identity disorder!"

Abruptly, Axl broke into a fit. He held his sides as he didn't speak, but just practically mocked her statement by laughing it off. Kicking his legs in the air, he nearly rolled off the edge, but managed to stay on.

Once he stopped, he gave off a stupid grin. "Ma'am, I can assure you, Gefangene is not a personality. He's a completely different person than me. We just share the same body!"

"Yes, I know. That's the definition of dissociative identity disorder. Why do you find it so funny?"

"Pidge, Gefangene isn't my second personality. He's a virus."

"He's a WHAT?!" Pidge screamed out.

"Yea. A virus. Calm down."

"You have a virus in your systems?! Why didn't you tell anyone?!"

Axl continued speaking absolutely calmly. "I have. Everyone that questions Gefangene, I've told. It's practically becoming common knowledge, at this rate."

"I...I don't understand how a virus can co-exist with the robot it is in. I mean, viruses are supposed to infect and take over."

"Oh, no, Gefangene did that once."

"THEN HOW ARE YOU TREATING HIS PRESENCE SO CALMLY?!"

Axl sighed, before suddenly resuming a thoughtful pose, crossing his legs and placing one hand on his jawline. When he spoke, his voice was deeper-pitched. "I guess I must explain our situation."

"G...Gefangene?"

As "Axl" spoke, his color scheme went from navy blue and red to white and lavender. Even his hair was turning to a shade of violet. "Seeing as how my color scheme is completely changing, I don't need to answer that inquiry."

"If you're a virus...I just don't get it." Pidge ran a hand through her hair.

"Would you like me to go into detail? Perhaps knowing the whole story could explain a few things to you."

The Green Paladin sighed. "Yes, I...I would like that."

"Very well. I can trace the origin of our condition to six years ago, a year before the Otherworlder War. That year, there was merely the Jakob Elevator incident."

"If you don't mind me asking...What's the Jakob Elevator?"

"I do not mind at all. In fact, I love that you're asking questions. Holds evidence to a curious and intelligent mind. In our world, spaceships or aerial crafts that can break through the atmosphere were not common craft. Instead, we sought other methods to colonize other planets. Thus, the Jakob Elevator was created. An orbital elevator meant to reach out to the moon for humans to colonize it."

"How was it built?"

"Reploids. The main workforce for humans was our species. So therefore, the entire working staff of the Jakob Elevator was of Reploids. The main engineer, the chief architect of the elevator, was a devil in disguise."

Pidge huffed. "Let me guess: he was a bad guy?"

Gefangene chuckled. "Precisely. His manipulations at the elevator caused many law enforcement individuals to attack the elevator. Axl was one of them. Facing and destroying the chief architect was accomplished, but Axl was knocked unconscious from a chip being implanted into his cranial systems. That chip held data that was the technical...birth of me."

"Did you ever find out the man's identity?"

"I do know who it is. But like me, he is a good man now. He even has a wife, last I have heard. However, I am getting off topic. You know of the statuses of viruses before and after they enter a body, correct?"

Pidge adjusted her glasses. "I do. Outside of a body, a virus is non-living. However, once it enters its host, it becomes a living thing, where it can begin to reproduce."

"That is exactly what happened to me. I was dead, per say, until I was awakened by being implanted into Axl. And with that, I secretly began to develop into a hidden sleeper agent of sorts inside Axl's data, hiding from prying eyes. This process took a year, until the Otherworlder War.

"In the war, two armies were the main opposing forces, though there was a third force manipulating it all behind the scenes. Axl was in one of those armies, but I belonged to the third, hidden army. They wanted to be able to control both armies without efforts. In the war, I was used for the first time.

"I couldn't outright control Axl at first. Instead, I placed trigger words in his head that helped lull him into a hypnotic state to be easily brainwashed by the mastermind of the war. The trigger words, I proceeded to adopt as my name, because that was what I was: Gefangene. Prisoner in German."

"What do you mean, that was what you were?" Pidge questioned. "You were a prisoner, too?"

"Well, I had little choice in my actions. Like I controlled Axl, the mastermind controlled me. That process proceeded until the climax of the war, where I fully took over Axl for the first time. I deserted to the third army, using Axl's body as a physical force to help forward my master's goals.

"While I was controlling him, I couldn't let it show, but I felt such a...rush. I began to enjoy being in a physical form. I liked it. I liked being alive. I liked moving without any limitations. Wouldn't you like to move if you couldn't for your entire life?

"However, all good things come to an end. The war ended with the defeat and crippling of the third army, and the two armies united. As for me, I was nearly deleted when Axl was brought back to resume control. I immediately retreated into the depths of his mind.

"Something happened when he was brought back. Both of our data clashed, and as a result, data I never had before was added to me. Emotions, like regret and guilt. A consciousness, a grievance of what my actions have done. All came pouring upon me, and made me go into the equivalent of shock. I stayed in a dormant state for about a year, and may not have woken up if it wasn't for outside sources.

"Axl found me. He found my hidden data after believing me dead for the past year. Immediately, he rushed to delete me. I woke up in the process of being deleted, slowly wiped away. It didn't take much for me to realize I was dying.

"I didn't know what to think or say. Was I scared? Confused? Whatever it was, I was reduced to screaming and begging for my life. I had no idea what was going on at that time. I just knew that I was going to be deleted, and if I did nothing, I will certainly perish.

"Somehow, I got to him. It stopped. I was allowed to live. I had woken up to near-death, so I had a flimsy grasp on the current events. Axl had to go into his own data to speak to me and confirm what had just happened to both of us, but mostly himself. To him, he had spared an enemy. To me...an enemy spared me.

"At that point, it was obvious he wasn't going to delete me then. So, he confided in X the situation, who in turn told Zero. All three of them slowly drew me out, seeing if I really was one to be feared, or one to befriend. And eventually, I passed their little test.

"However, I kept refusing my own body. I don't think X and Zero still understand to this day, but they never have questioned it. I think to me and Axl, it would be lonely without that voice in your head.

"Which brings me to today. Axl and I have worked as a team up until this point. People always take a bit to get used to the concept, but I find they eventually warm up to me." Gefangene finally looked away from the sky to stare at Pidge. "What do you think? Do you think you can accept me?"

"Well...First, I'll need to apologize. For the whole mistake of-"

The virus gave a chuckle. "It's alright. It's probably the closest thing to the truth, actually, though I wouldn't say we suffer from that disorder. As I said, we are two completely different people."

Pidge laughed. "And...yea. I bet I can accept both of you. I don't think it would be hard to. I mean, I can tell who's talking, due to the voice and armor thing."

"I'm glad for that." Gefangene stood up. After standing straight for a few moments, he spoke to mostly himself. "You do realize this can't be it. There must be infinite worlds, infinite possibilities. And for the optimistic, infinite friends and..."

Pidge got up, too. "Infinite futures. I like that idea."

"Perhaps in a different timeline, right now, an Axl is questioning a Katie on her dissociative identity disorder with a Pidge. You may never know."

"Though I would like to know whether that would actually be dissociative identity disorder in that timeline."


	6. The Hatching Cocoon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in this chapter:
> 
> Mint, Nowi, Libra, Virion, Eirika, Spider, Takumi, Cedar, Dynamo
> 
> Chapter Summary:
> 
> One year before the forming of the Alliance, a lone mercenary family visits a familiar home.

"Hello, Libra!"

"Good morning, Mint. How are Nowi and Nah?"

"They're amazing! Nowi's been busy, since Nah's teething now, though. Please say hi to the husband and daughter when you have a chance!"

"Virion and Sapphire would appreciate that. Ah, good morning, milady."

"Good morning, Libra. Are there any important files?"

"All currently important files are with your husband. Have a good day today."

"Thank you, and you too."

One year before Carla summoned together the various heroes of the entire timeline to fight against the Umbrati, heels clicked down the hallway filled with the occasional member of the city council. Eirika walked along with a pep in her step, smiling as her long hair currently pulled back into a ponytail bounced with her every movement.

With a friendly hello to all she passed by, she pushed open a door labelled "Mayor and Right-Hand". Closing it gently behind her, she looked at the lone occupant of the room.

Spider's hat was resting neatly on the rack next to the door. The man himself was at the desk in the center of the room neatly arranged so that a small pile of papers were on one side, and the office essentials were on the other. In one hand, he held a pen that he was using to write on a document.

"Busy, are you, dear?" Eirika, pulling off the dark yellow cloak on her, placed it on the rack.

Spider looked up and smiled warmly at the familiar woman. "You're looking good."

The Princess smiled. Besides her ponytail, she also wore a combination of Renais and modern clothing. While she wore Renais boots and feathered shoulder plating, the color of red was prominent on her otherwise simple outfit. A red sweater covered her upper body and arms, but still allowed her painted red nails and silver ring with a sparkling gem set in it around her ring finger to show. She also adorned a golden, ruffled skirt that ended just above her knees.

Eirika leaned to kiss Spider's forehead, leaving a faint mark of lipstick. "I have to be to set a good example. You? You've barely changed these past few years."

Spider chuckled as Eirika sat down at a desk in the corner. "Come on now, Eirika. I like my outfit. I'm not looking to change it."

"Yes, of course." Eirika opened the folder she had been carrying, laying it neatly before her. "I am well aware of that. How come the statistics?"

"It's one of the lucky months. Not a single recorded or even rumored Maverick attack."

"We've been getting these months more and more as the years have gone by. Soon, we won't worry about the Mavericks at all."

Spider chuckled. "They haven't been much of a problem to begin with. Though there are always..." He faltered, pen nib still pressed to the paper. "Other problems." He noticed he was making a splotch of ink, and pulled back the pen. "Dammit."

At this, the woman sighed. "Still facing the accusations?"

"What else? The media's been doing nothing but pummel me, even before the Cocoon became an official city."

Eirika reached over to place her hand on Spider's, fingers gracing the exact same ring on his finger. "With the Maverick threats dying down, those accusations will stop eventually."

"It would have taken four years to do it," the ex-bounty hunter joked in return.

Interrupting the tender moment was a knock on the door. "Excuse me?" A voice questioned.

"Is that Mint?" Eirika questioned as Spider got up.

In a few strides, Spider made it to the door, and opened it. "Do you need anything, Mint?"

By now, Mint's two pigtail braids have become one simple braid behind her head. Her armor still retained much of its former design, with the colors of blue and green armor all over her gray bodysuit.

"Hello, ma'am! Sir!" Mint bowed.

Eirika bowed her head as well. "Mint. It's always a pleasure to see you."

"How are Nah and Mary?" Spider questioned as Eirika returned to her work.

"Both are just fine! Your little girl is growing up just fine! Oh, I still remember the day when you learned the spell worked and that Eirika was pregnant! You were all over the place with joy!"

"Hey, I enlisted you as her babysitter, not a storyteller," the mayor retorted. "You came here to say something, right?"

"Well, yea! We just got word that the family is in town!"

Eirika looked up at that. "Takumi, Cedar, and Dynamo?"

"Who else? They're on their way right now!"

Spider chuckled. "Well, we'll make sure to give them a warm welcome. Thank you for the heads up, Mint!"

"No problem!"

Mint's words were correct. Just a few blocks away from the city hall, there was a marketplace set up. Due to the different cultures of the city of the Cocoon, different types of stalls were all over the place.

Cedar looked up at the various skyscrapers. "Looks like since the Cocoon became official, Spider's done a lot of renovating..."

Dynamo leaned on him, elbow on Cedar's head. "Aw, are the big bad skyscrapers making you feel short?"

"I'm perfectly content with my height. Especially when you have trouble getting through doorways."

"Hey!"

Just nearby, Takumi had a hand on his chin, looking at a display of food. "Hm...How much for the takoyaki, sir?"

"A serving of eight balls of takoyaki costs five dollars."

"Yea, I'll take it." Takumi pulled out a crumpled-up dollar bill. "I've been hungry since we got here."

Both of them watched Takumi come back to them, eating the takoyaki. Dynamo snagged one for himself, ruffling Takumi's hair. "Five dollars for only eight of these? What a ripoff."

"You bought eight thin brownie cookies for the same price just the other day, Dynamo." Takumi bit into one of the takoyaki balls.

"Those...were worth it. They were good."

"Yea, so you have no reason to complain about the price of takoyaki." Takumi finished the ball he had in his hand.

Cedar nudged Takumi's left shoulder. "Is the arm bothering you?"

He rolled his shoulder, and winced a bit. "I think the skin around it's getting a bit banged up. Might need a new model."

Dynamo groaned. "Can we get a move on? I wanna see our itsy bitsy Spider, and Spider Junior!"

The other two began following him. "There is NO way Spider named his kid Spider Junior."

"It could happen, Cedar!"

 

"I extremely doubt it, but alright."

 

"Takumiiiiii!"

 

On cue, the young man looked back. "Nowi?"

 

Before he could do anything, he was full-on tackled by what seemed to be a young girl. Arms looped around his neck, she pulled herself onto him, laughing and cheering with joy. Takumi laughed himself, seeming to not even mind the sudden attack.

 

"Hello, Nowi."

 

Nowi doesn't seem to have aged a day. However, she wears a much more decent outfit. All of her clothes were the same, except for a purple shirt pulled on, with a large pink heart where her breasts would be. Along with that, a shiny new headdress adorned her head, visible on her forehead, but otherwise hidden by her hair.

 

With her mouth, Nowi snagged an unbitten takoyaki that Takumi held out to her. "Huwwo!"

 

As she chomped away, the young man chuckled. "Do you greet everybody like this?"

 

In no time at all, the takoyaki ball was history. "Only to people that have been gone a really, really long time!" Nowi hugged Takumi again, but more tightly. "I missed you guys so much!"

 

Dynamo reached out and ruffled Nowi's hair. "For a thousand and six or so years old, you barely aged a day, last we met."

 

"It's annoying! What would Nah think when she grows up?"

 

Cedar cleared his throat. "We apologize deeply for missing your wedding with Mint. We had no intention to, but a very important mission arose last minute, and-"

 

"Already forgiven!" Nowi happily replied. "I know you guys are really busy, so I doubted your schedule would allow you to come, anyways. But it's fine! You delivered the wedding presents and your regards, so it's not like you just didn't care!"

 

"Trust me," Takumi stated. "We would have loved to have been there."

 

"Oh!" Nowi seemed to suddenly realize. "Everyone's waiting for you at the city hall! Come on, come on!" She began to push along Takumi, hands on his back.

 

He began to move along, laughing at her struggles in pushing him. "I'm part-metal, remember? Okay, I'm going, I'm going. Calm down."

At the city hall, it was probably a party for the ages. The three rarely came to the city, which meant their visits were even more special. After the work for the day was over, it was practically confirmed that a celebration would be held.

While Virion and Nowi couldn't make it, due to their responsibilities as caretakers for their children, the small party was still fun. The only participants were Eirika, Spider, Libra, Mint, Takumi, Cedar, and Dynamo, but that only made it more fun, as everybody knew everyone in the small gathering.

Takumi sat on a ledge, simply sipping from the plastic cup in his hand. "Tastes kind of strong. What is this?"

Dynamo laughed before holding up a bottle and looking at it. "Let's see...Buccaneer Linfan...It's rum. Straight-up rum." He double-checked. "Though it's a Reploid drink."

Takumi simply leaned over and spit out the drink in his mouth onto the grass below him. "Wonderful. I already drank a fourth of my cup."

Cedar laughed at this. "If you want me to, I'll hold your hair back when your weak stomach gives out."

"It ain't weak. It can tank spicy foods, unlike yours."

"It is almost unnatural, the way you can resist spicy foods." Cedar kept eye contact with Takumi while sipping his drink.

Spider nudged Cedar a bit. "Well? How's life?"

He shrugged in response. "Same old. Do a few illegal jobs, do a cart load of jobs for the Hunters, it's the daily grind."

"You, uh..." He took a glance at Takumi to see him speaking to Eirika. "Find...her, yet?"

"Not even close." Cedar sighed, his voice dropping to a murmur. "Sakura isn't anywhere. She disappeared completely off the map. What's worse, our places to look are running thin, at this point. Soon, we'll need to head to other worlds to try our luck."

Spider raised an eyebrow. "Even after four years?"

"At this point, we've unearthed every damn thing that bastard did but her. It's such a cruel twist of irony that the one thing we're looking for is the one thing that can't be found."

"Fox probably sent her off as his last laugh. Do you even have a single lead left?"

"Only one. But it's the one we started with."

"The video feed..."

From the fortress, the video feed was recovered, though damaged in some parts. In it, they had clearly heard the dying Fox tell Sakura to escape the fortress using a hidden passageway, and to find somebody under a tree. While the switch for the passage was found, the person never was, there having been no trace of anybody under any tree. It was a dead end from the start.

"I just wish we had some miracle fall from the sky," Cedar stated. "While it would mean Takumi would go home...honestly, it would help him sleep better knowing his sister was okay."

Spider looked over at Mint darting around Takumi, trying to get him riled up. In return, he picked her up with his left arm and spun her around while holding her close. "He seems fine."

"You haven't lived with him for four years." Cedar waved in front of his face a bit. "Ladybug."

"Why the hell would a ladybug be out so late at-EIRIKA!"

Immediately, Takumi dropped Mint. Grabbing Eirika by the waist, he dropped onto his back, pulling her with him. The shot came before the bang that echoed throughout the darkened city, and went through the air where the woman's head just was.

The young mercenary got up, and instantly looked at the rooftop to see a red dot quickly dart out of sight. "Sniper. I'll be back."

"Where are you going?!" Libra questioned as Takumi began scaling up the wall, launching himself up onto the roof.

"After them!"

The priest looked back at Spider. "I will call law enforcement. He can't take them on his own!"

Dynamo laughed at that. "Give him fifteen. He'll drag back the sniper's corpse."

The only lights that guided Takumi's way were of the lights from the rooms in the buildings, and the streetlights below. Besides that, it was pitch black as he raced across the rooftops, either jumping to a different roof or using the hidden hook in his mechanical arm's wrist to grapple his way over.

As soon as his feet hit the ground on one of the roofs, his instincts flared up. Immediately, he ducked, and a blur went over him. A thrown punch. Reaching up, he grabbed the arm, then flipped the attacker over his head and slammed them into the ground.

Still holding them by the arm, Takumi pulled out his only weapon on hand, a knife, and positioned it at the attacker's neck. "Who sent you?" He growled through gritted teeth.

Takumi found himself stunned by the answer. With pure yellow, glowing eyes staring directly into his soul, there were no words, but instead a growl. It was a relatively human noise, but warped and impossible to make with your tongue alone.

"What the f-"

A ringing flared up in his ears when a swipe of claws sent him reeling. He quickly dabbed his face, then looked at his gloved hand. Three deep lines were across his face, oozing blood. Here was to praying they didn't scar.

The creature got up, standing in a hunched manner. One of their hands was in a claw form, dripping with blood Takumi recognized as his own. It reverted into a normal form-shape shifting.

"Alright...yea." Takumi rolled his shoulder before cracking his neck. "You aren't afraid to play with sharp objects."

This time, Takumi was ready for the third punch. He ducked low, and delivered a kick straight to their stomach, sending them sprawling back. While they were stunned, Takumi spun on his heel to get behind them.

He looped one arm around their neck. "Surprise," he snarled before stabbing his knife straight into its throat.

For a few seconds, nothing happened. Then, the human-like creature crumbled into black smoke that harmlessly drifted away. Only a single flower dropped to the ground, the only indication that the creature truely existed besides the claw marks.

Takumi knelt down. Gently placing the stem of the flower between his two fingers, he twirled it gently in his fingers. He could identify it as a rose, but the petals were completely black. Was it even possible for rose petals to be so dark?

He didn't stand around for long. Leaving the rose, he instead began heading back, trying to keep the blood out of his eyes so he could navigate safely.

For a whole year, he didn't understand what that creature was. He thought about it constantly, finding in his spare time it ate at him like a decomposing piece of fruit. It wasn't Reploid, and it definitely wasn't human.

Finally, he got an answer almost a whole year after the peculiar event, when the Alliance was formed by the chrono angel Carla. The name of the creature. An Umbrati. But that did not answer all of the questions.

Now, as he sat in the Vanguard Hall, legs lazily propped up on the table next to him, he thought of the other unanswered questions. If this Shadow Queen did control the Umbrati, what would she gain from attempting to kill Eirika? Why did she only send one Umbrati? And what was the deal with the black rose?

Whatever it was, he was definitely sure that that was not the first time he has seen a black rose. He can't recall when, but...

He immediately sat up, eyes widening. "Kurami," he breathed out.

He has seen it before. Once or twice, during his time in the Crimson Palace. A windowsill filled with flower pots sat in complete darkness, all the way in the back. Yet, roses of colors varying from dark blue to purple to pitch black flourished.

Kurami was a woman of mystery. This only adds another mystery.

Is she connected to the rose? To the Umbrati? To the Queen?


	7. Fate of Jakob

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter:
> 
> -Lucy-1  
> -(Ghost) Echo  
> -Theodore  
> -Jadir  
> -Eagle-12  
> -Kana  
> -Elizabeth  
> -Corrin  
> -Lumine
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> Memories of her past life lead Lucy-1 to the kingdom of Valla to see some old friends.

Lucy shook the Reaper's Hand. Letting the empty bullet cases shake out, she flicked in another round, then rolled back in the case. "Damn Umbrati!" She found herself snarling before peering out of hiding.  
  
Her observant eye could see about six darting shadows. All of them, judging by the smoky wisps they left behind, were the attackers of the fireteam. She shot three times, and the amount of Umbrati went from six to five.  
  
Lucy went back into hiding, baring her teeth in a snarl. "Echo, how's my Super?"  
  
"About 80%!" Her Ghost replied, screaming over the gunfire from the member of this half of the small fireteam.  
  
"Well, great!" Hood flapping in the wind, Lucy raised her voice, too. "KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN, THEODORE! FIVE LEFT, COMING NORTHBOUND!"  
  
She knew she identify Theodore as a Sunbreaker, because she could see the Hammer of Sol whizz through the air. It found its mark in three of the remaining Umbrati, whose deaths were shown by the black smoke flying away. The remaining two shrieked and went behind cover.  
  
Theodore opened fire on their cover with his shotgun, standing up out of hiding. "COME ON OUT, YA COWARDS!"  
  
The Hunter Vanguard groaned. "Are you INSANE, you-"  
  
Darkness darted through the air, and found its target in the Titan's noggin. He went crashing to the ground, and Lucy caught his shotgun with her foot as she heard his Ghost's gruff voice growl "Guardian down!".  
  
"Kinderguardian?" Lucy guessed.  
  
As she kicked the shotgun into the air and caught it, Echo replied, "Yep. I know him from a year back."  
  
Lucy stood up before beginning to blast away with the shotgun. "Only a year? I only have got five years, and I'm the freaking Hunter Vanguard!" She looked at the revived Titan, and literally screamed, "GET YOUR CRAP TOGETHER, THEODORE!" at him before tossing him the shotgun, switching back to her hand cannon.  
  
Theodore quickly got back up on his feet as Lucy crouched back down. "I'm trying, I'm try-" Once more, she saw a black streak nail him in the head.  
  
"Guardian down!"  
  
"Oh, come on! It's just two!" Lucy was definitely annoyed at this point. "Our only two other teammates are clearing out east sector, and I'm stuck with you and the west sector! I'll rather jump into a Taken blight!"  
  
Lucy waited a second before making sure her hood was over her head, hair poking out. Her feet hit the gravel, and she sprinted around the side, taking cover with what rubble there was.  
  
"Is my Super ready now?!" Lucy questioned her companion, making sure to keep her head down.  
  
"It's on! Go kick their asses, Lucy!" Echo cheered her on.  
  
"Will do!" Lucy crackled with Arc energy, and the familiar feeling of warmth in her hand radiated from the forming knife.  
  
She shot straight out of hiding, heading for the first Umbrati. Once she plunged in the knife, it shrieked, and immediately turned to smoke. The second barely got its powers ready for another shot, as Lucy whipped out the stick in her holster. Spinning it, she flicked it forward, and positioned it so when the scythe fully extended, the blade shot out to spear them right in the head.  
  
Theodore struggled onto his feet, looking at Lucy. "...Are they gone?" He questioned.  
  
"I'm standing up in the open with no worry. Of course they're dead, kinderguardian." Lucy returned the scythe to its sheathed form before putting it back on her belt.  
  
"Don't use kinderguardian in such a negative way!" Theodore stood up. "You're one, too!"  
  
"And I'm the Hunter Vanguard, so I don't see why you think I can't hold myself on a higher level than you." Lucy whipped out a com. "This is Lucy-1. Jadir, Eagle-12. How are you holding?"  
  
The communications crackled to life. "We're doing just fine, Hunter Vanguard!" Jadir's voice responded. "All Umbrati are destroyed in this area!"  
  
"They were the last ones. Good job, kinderguardians." Lucy flipped the com shut.   
  
"Does this mean we can go now?" Theodore questioned. "I don't want to stay in this world any longer. More exactly, this place."  
  
Lucy looked around, finally looking around at the ruins of the Eurasia crash. "Yea, I can see why you don't want to be here. You can go on ahead, I'll be right behind you."  
  
Theodore paused. "You're staying behind?"  
  
"To clean up the mess they made. Why are you questioning me?"  
  
"Oh, not questioning! I was just wondering." The Guardian began walking away, his pine green Ghost following behind. "Good luck with your scouting, Hunter Vanguard."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
Lucy looked over her shoulder under Theodore was out of sight. Once he was gone, she turned back forward and began running forward, gun in hand.  
  
Echo formed besides her as her sparrow began to form, kicking up dust all around them. "Are you sure about this?"  
  
"I don't know why, but I swear I have seen the Jakob Elevator before." She swung one leg over it, hopping on. "I don't know if it was good or bad to me, but it's something, and I want to find out what."  
  
"Zavala won't be happy..." Her Ghost mused.  
  
Lucy kick-started the sparrow. "He never is." She shot off, gripping the handles and narrowing her eyes.  
  
The ruins were tough to navigate, with rubble and remains of the space colony structure all over. However, she also used it to her advantage, using the occasional impromptu ramp to launch herself over the worst parts and land safely on the other side.  
  
"How are getting to the Jakob Elevator?" Echo questioned. "It's all the way in the Galapagos Islands."  
  
"I'll be sightseeing," Lucy replied, looking over her shoulder. "Since my past self couldn't do that. Honestly, I just need a break, after all that's-"  
  
"LUCY, EYES FORWARD!"  
  
Lucy's head whipped forward, and her eyes widened. Her sparrow was barreling right towards wreckage, and she was too close now to avoid it, so the result was her sparrow exploding and taking her with it.  
  
"Guardian down!"  
  
 _When she opened her eyes, neither Echo nor the Eurasia ruins were in sight. Instead, she stood in an overgrown courtyard that was familiar, but she had no memory of. Everything was just a little bit taller, and she felt...younger?_  
  
 _"Princess. What brings you here?"_  
  
 _Lucy spun on her heel. Behind her, a man leaned on the wall, arms crossed. He was wearing a Reploid outfit, signalling he hailed from the world she was in now. She has never seen him before, but found something about his amber eye and purple hair familiar._  
  
 _She attempted to ask him who he was, but those weren't the words that came out of he mouth. Instead, she replied, "I was looking for you! Marth isn’t going to train with me, so I wanted to train with you, since you’re my friend and all!"_  
  
 _"I see. I assure you, my mind is my greatest weapon, not my staff, nor my crystals. While we train, I will study your movements, and find a weakness."_  
  
 _Lucy laughed that off. "Yea, right! You’re soft, architect!"_  
  
 _"Me? Soft?" He rolled his eyes in return. "Oh, princess. You have not seen me in action much."_  
  
"Eyes up, Lucy! Eyes up!"  
  
Lucy snapped open her eyes, gasping a little. Lying on the ground, she sat up. A quick glance confirmed she was still in the Eurasia ruins. Was what just happened a memory?  
  
To confirm it, she looked at Echo. "What just happened?"  
  
"You crashed into wreckage, and died in the ensuing explosion. Look forward, next time."  
  
"So...No courtyard? No mysterious man?'  
  
"Mysterious-what?"  
  
"Nevermind." Lucy let her sparrow re-appear. "Change of plans. We're not going to the Jakob Elevator. We won't find its architect there."  
  
"The guy that went Maverick?" Echo questioned. "Why are we looking for him?"  
  
"Because he's the most likely one with answers." Lucy hopped back on. "Do you know how to get to Valla? It's in the same world as Hoshido and Nohr."  
  
"The closest technological gate for world-travelling is forty miles south. How are you remembering this stuff?"  
  
"It's just coming to me now," she simply replied before zooming off.  
  
With the maximum speed of sparrows able to go 220 kilometers an hour, it only took Lucy twenty minutes to reach her destination, only going a slightly more manageable 120 miles an hour. There, she found the gate, laying in a central area of a small town.  
  
Lucy walked into the building it was kept in. People came in and out, talking to others or running to people holding signs and hugging them. It reminded her of those romance cliche movies that had the man waiting in the airport overnight for his one true love, then her running out of the plane and hugging or kissing him. Yes, it had to be one of those.  
  
Echo followed her inside, avoiding people trying to poke her or full-on grab her out of the sky. "The gate's in here. I can detect it."  
  
"Looks like it." Lucy glanced around. "People seem to like to use it to travel."  
  
"Well, it's instant teleportation. Who wouldn't?"  
  
Lucy looked up and around. "Which way?"  
  
"Down to the left." Echo twirled around as they headed that way. "A whole business has been made out of world travel..."  
  
Apparently, it was rush hour at that moment. Lucy waited what felt like forever until she could pass through the gate due to so many people. While Echo informed her that it was only another mere twenty minutes, she still complained nonetheless.  
  
Finally, she could go up to it and turn the knob to Valla. Staring through the shimmery effects of the picture, she watched the environment go to an unfamiliar one, set in a courtyard. Around it, pieces of the land floated in the air.  
  
"And...why do you wanna go there?" Echo questioned.  
  
Lucy let her hood drop down. "Because I know he's there." She strode in without another word, cloak trailing behind her.  
  
 _Lucy sat in a chair in a room that has seen better days. In her hands, she turned over blueprints that she identified as the technological gates so commonplace today. For some reason, she felt unhappy about something, but didn't know what._  
  
 _She sighed, letting her arms drop down into her lap. "Does this mean all my friends have to go...?"_  
  
 _"Unfortunately." She turned her head to see the same man from before standing at the doorway and looking at her with a sympathetic gaze. However, he wore only a skin-tight bodysuit, and his hair was longer and a deeper shade of purple._  
  
 _"They were the first friends I made in a long time...They’re not on your level of friendship, but...They were there when you weren’t."_  
  
 _The man walked over, and knelt in front of her. "We all have to leave memories behind sometimes. Even friends."_  
  
 _"I hate that life lesson..."_  
  
 _"I understand."_  
  
 _Lucy looked out the window into the courtyard she could recognize as familiar. "Can I go outside? I want to...think on what’s happened."_  
  
 _"Very well. Be careful, princess."_  
  
 _"I will."_  
  
 _The Hunter Vanguard stood up. Passing the blueprints to the man, she strode out of the room. Seeing a few different people head down the hall away from here, she decided to go the way they were coming from._  
  
 _When the hall was empty except her, she suddenly gained a very bad feeling. A feeling of being watched. Trying to push it away, she continued on to go outside._  
  
 _Behind her, the shadows shifted._  
  
Lucy looked up and around. The portal behind her, she now stood in the courtyard she had viewed. Echo floated around her, looking only slightly interested in the area. She stayed close as Lucy pressed forward, taking the road to what she presumed to be the Kingdom of Valla.  
  
"The stone castle Gyges..." Lucy murmured.  
  
"Tell me again: how do you know all of this?"  
  
"Partly because it's been coming back to me since I met my old friends again. Also, I've been doing my research ever since we talked to Axl."  
  
"You're really looking into this, aren't you? Aren't Guardians usually forbidden from digging up their past?"  
  
"I think exceptions can be made if you're surrounded by people who knew you from before."  
  
Lucy didn't expect anything truly special about the city. It was unfamiliar to her. She's probably never been to it before. She would probably have a hard time searching for the architect, if he even was here in the first place.  
  
Well, that would have been the case if he wasn't the king of Valla, judging by one of the pamphlets those tourist attractions have up for grabs.  
  
Skimming over it quickly, she closed it. "Lumine. That's the name Axl said, so it has to be him."  
  
Echo leaned to look. "This Lumine is the king?"  
  
"Which means he lives there." Lucy pointed ahead at the impending castle at the end of the long road forward they stood on.  
  
"Do you think he might not recognize you?" Echo questioned.  
  
"He has to. If not..." The Hunter Vanguard shrugged. "Well, I'll just settle with not really knowing who Liberty was."  
  
Lucy was the only one going up the steps to the castle. Ghost trans-matting away, she was virtually alone once she got to the top.  
  
Of course, getting in is never easy. At the entrance stood two guards, faces masked by their helmets. And judging by their reactions, Lucy was a complete stranger to them.  
  
Both raised their weapons in a way to warn her. "What business do you have here?" The one on the right questioned.  
  
Lucy simply raised her hands in a way to convey peace. "I am Lucy-1 of the Vanguard. From the world of Earth, but not the Earth the king comes from. Speaking of, I want to talk to him."  
  
"Have you told the king in advance of this meeting?"  
  
"Look, just tell him that Princess Liberty is here, and I'm pretty sure he'll clear his schedule."  
  
"I doubt it. The princess has been long dead, at the very least missing."  
  
Lucy hit her chest. "If so, then how am I standing right here?"  
  
Before the guards could do anything, the door creaked open, and two small children bolted out. One was a boy with spiky hair, the other a girl with pigtails. Both, Lucy noted, had the same purple shade of hair, so they had to be related of some manner.  
  
Lucy on instinct stretched out two hands. One snagged the girl, the other the boy. Both were easily prevented from going down the stairs and possibly tripping at the speed they were going.  
  
"Miiiiiss!" The boy complained, kicking around. "Don't ruin our game!"  
  
"Yea!" The girl agreed. "We have to run from Mama!"  
  
Speaking off, the door opened wider, and a woman ran out. With long, cream colored hair and a royal-looking outfit of blue and white, Lucy could easily identify her as the queen of Valla.  
  
The queen took back both children. "Kana! Elizabeth! You can't run off like that! What if you tripped on the stairs like last time?" She looked up. "Thank you, miss...?"  
  
"Lucy. Lucy-1. And don't worry. I have a daughter myself. Big ball of energy, she is."  
  
"...Wait. Can you take off your hood for a second?"  
  
Lucy did so with a flick of her wrist, smiling. "What? Am I familiar?"  
  
"...P...Princess?" The queen's jaw seemed to literally drop.  
  
"Yea, some people call me that, so I've been learning to respond to it." The woman grinned. "How have you been, your Majesty?"  
  
"...Come in."  
  
Inside wasn't ringing a bell to Lucy, either. Looking around, not even the symbol of Valla on the tapestries was familiar. Instead of trying to figure out if she's ever been here, she decided to focus on the people inside of the castle.  
  
Before she could do so, she found herself on the receiving end of a tight hug. Stumbling back, she found a sudden weight on her body, bewildering her to no end.  
  
The hug was from a man just a bit taller than her. With long lavender hair and a flowing outfit similar to the queen's, he squeezed her close as he let his head rest on her shoulder.  
  
Lucy laughed a bit. "Lumine. I'm guessing that's you."  
  
"Princess..." Lumine pulled back to give her a smile filled with tears. "It's been much too long..."  
  
"Yea...Five years, right?" Lucy chuckled, not really knowing what else to say. "I bet a lot's changed."  
  
"If you don't mind, may we talk while we walk around the castle?" Lumine was already moving away. "I find I do that subconsciously, and a conversation like ours may not be fit for all to see."  
  
Lucy followed. "Yea, yea. I get you."  
  
While they passed the occasional worker, that was it. It was only the two of them walking along in the halls of the castle, Lumine taking the lead and Lucy right behind him.  
  
"You're taller," he commented. "More...developed. In terms of voice and..." He looked back and made a slight gesture to his chest.  
  
"Gave myself an upgrade. I'm not really a teen no more. With that being said, I should clarify a few things. 1-"  
  
"You have no recollection of your time before and during the Otherworlder War. I know. I was told by Axl...Lucy-1."  
  
The Hunter Vanguard laughed a bit. "Just Lucy. The one is...silent. Sometimes."  
  
"And I've heard you're in a very important position."  
  
"Hunter Vanguard. Succeeded my husband."  
  
"Is he retired?"  
  
"Let's just say instead of Cayde-6, he can now be called Cayde-6 Feet Under."  
  
Lumine paused at that. "You can joke about death?"  
  
"Humor is a common coping mechanism in the Guardians. It surprisingly works. You should try it."  
  
"...I will pass." Lumine resumed his normal pace. "That being said, I am sorry that happened to you."  
  
"It's alright. You can't be sorry if you never knew him."  
  
"You've gained quite a barbed tongue."  
  
"Common trait when you die every other day. Innocence can't make it that far, but sarcasm and dry humor can." Lucy rubbed her hands. "Look, while I'm here, I might as well tell you. We're currently in...what you can call an interdimensional war."  
  
"Inter...what? What do you mean by...?"  
  
"Axl told you about my whole new identity, but he didn't fill you in on the war part?" She huffed at that, stepping back a bit. "That dude needs to sort out the priorities on his list."  
  
Lumine sighed. "Princess...Lucy...I have been away from war for a long time. I don't believe I'm ready to just jump into one that spans...dimensions."  
  
"Uh, hate to break it to you, but I don't think you understand, your Majesty. We are fighting the literal embodiment of darkness."  
  
"But...darkness is merely a concept. An idea. Ideas and concepts cannot be physical or mental. It's impossible."  
  
"Screw the philosophy, it's real. And we're fighting it. They call themselves Umbrati, okay? They can take any species you think of. Animal. Human. Robot. And turn it into one of them." Lucy put a hand on the king's shoulder. "And we need everybody who can fight. Because if we lose, these things would move on from my home..." She jabbed a finger into Lumine's chest. "And waltz straight into yours."  
  
For a long moment, Lumine didn't speak. He merely stared at Lucy. She started to think that perhaps she should have delivered it in a different manner.  
  
Finally, Lumine took the hand still on his shoulder. "Ylisse. Hoshido. Nohr."  
  
"What...What are you doing? What are you talking about?"  
  
"They, and many more worlds, participated in the Otherworlder War. We have friends there. If you get out the word that this...interdimensional war threatens all of us, you will get the help you seek."  
  
"And you?" Lucy questioned.  
  
The king paused. "I will need to think on it more. But honestly speaking, we know what the outcome will be."  
  
"Well then, I'll see you in the fight, King Lumine of Valla."  
  
"I will see you too, Hunter Vanguard Lucy-1."  
  
Lucy turned to leave, pulling up her hood. Once she slipped through the door and out of sight, Lumine allowed himself to lean against the wall, giving a heavy sigh.  
  
He was only partially correct. Liberty had lived, but did not live to be the person he had remembered her as.  
  
"Oh, how these years have changed our lives...for better or worse."


	8. The Mirage

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in this chapter:
> 
> -Shiro  
> -Zavala  
> -Lucy-1  
> -Ikora  
> -Lucina  
> -Axl/Gefangene  
> -Carla  
> -Rowan  
> -Robina the Hood  
> -Eirika  
> -Pidge  
> -Hunk  
> -Chrom  
> -Mega Man X  
> -Fox  
> -The Shadow Queen
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> An old enemy thought dead rises once more, and with him brings a revelation that a being can be consumed by darkness.

"Hey, nice outfit, Shiro!"

"Only one I had on hand, Pidge! Someone decided to throw my clothes into the wash without me knowing!"

"Sorry!" Hunk could be heard on the other side of the hangar.

Zavala only looked up slightly when he heard footsteps go up to him. "Ah, Takashi. Do you have those reports I requested-?" His head snapped up, and his eyes went wide. "foooor...?"

Shiro stood there, the same as ever. However, a key difference was that instead of his casual attire or even his captain attire, he was clad in a skintight bodysuit that showed off his muscles quite well. And yet, he treated it as completely normal, still holding out the reports Zavala just spoke of.

"I finished the reports you gave me." After an awkward pause, Shiro tilted his head. "Um...Here you go."

Zavala quickly took them. "Thank you...Takashi."

"Um...You're welcome? Do you have anything else I can do?"

"No. No, that would be all. Thank you for your time and efforts."

The Titan Vanguard stayed in place, watching Shiro leave. His gaze began to trail down the man's back, but he quickly stopped himself upon realizing what he was doing. He spun quickly to face the table he was at, staring down at it while gripping the edges.

Both Ikora and Lucy stared at him, certainly bewildered. Both woman tried to find the right words, but Ikora didn't know as much as Lucy, having never seen Zavala like this.

"...Za-?" Lucy immediately shut up when Zavala slammed a book into his noggin. "Zavvie. Holy cow. You alright?"

"Yes. No. I...do not know." Zavala set back down the book before rubbing his now aching forehead. "I do not know what is happening to me. Usually, the City is my main priority, but recently, my mind has been focused on...other things."

Lucy's mouth formed an O, her mind already racing. "Oooooooh...Is iiiiit...focusing around one person?"

Zavala looked with an odd expression at her. "Don't be so preposterous. I am not looking for a relationship with anyone."

The Hunter Vanguard responded in a way that really no sane person would respond in. With a wide, open-mouthed smile, she made some sort of squealing noise that sounded like a person dying from asphyxiation laughing. While Ikora simply shrugged it off, Zavala stared at her with the only face you can use to truly respond to what just came out of her mouth.

Lucy quickly closed her mouth. "Don't lie to me, Zavvie...You got the hots for Shiro, don'tcha?"

Zavala looked away. "Takashi? No. We are comrades. That is all we are. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Mind focusing on other things? Like him clad in that tight bodysuit that shows EVERY detail? Come oooon. You've been bitten by the lovebug!"

Ikora chuckled, rolling her eyes and looking at the Awoken. "You? In love?"

"See? Ikora does not believe it."

"You didn't let me finish." The woman smiled while Zavala gained what could practically be an 'oh crap' expression for emotionless people. "It is not hard to admit your feelings, commander."

"I have no romantic feelings for anyone, no matter what anyone says."

Lucy laughed, and began to say, "Oh, come on-"

Everyone was cut off by a loud bang. All conversations, side and frontal, dimmed automatically. Heads turned to view at the area wherever the noise had come from.

A woman leaned on one arm, which clutched the doorframe that she stood in. A bloodied sword was grasped in her other hand. Her clothes were torn and soaked red, removing much of the originally blue fabric. Hair wild and disheveled, she lifted her head to show a mud-streaked face.

"X...Father...Fox..." With only those three words spoken, she collapsed right onto the floor.

Immediately, many people stood up and ran over to her side. Lucy skidded on one knee, then pressed two fingers to her neck.

"...She's still breathing!" She reported. "Somebody get a healer, medic, or whatever! I don't care!"

As a few people ran off, Zavala joined her side. "Who is this?" He questioned.

"Hey, don't look at me. I'm not the encyclopedia of faces, you know?"

With a crowd forming, it wasn't long before somebody pushed their way through to the front. That person happened to be Axl, who craned his neck to view not only the two Vanguard members, but the woman who had fainted.

"...L...Lucina." He suddenly bolted forward to her. "Lucina!"

Lucy looked up as Axl knelt besides the woman, looking horrified. "You know this lady, huh?"

"We fought in the war together," he simply answered, and that seemed to be it.

Despite his apparent lack for truly knowing her, he stayed in the medical bay the entire time. While the woman, Lucina, laid in bed with various bandages all over her body, he sat in a chair close by, watching her as he crossed one leg over the other.

 _"What happened to her?"_ Axl questioned in his mind.

Gefangene found it as his cue to join in. _"How is she even here?"_

_"I know, it doesn't make sense. And did she say something about...Fox?"_

Axl could practically feel Gefangene shiver. _"DON'T say his name. I don't like to think about it...and my past."_

Before Axl could respond, there was a groan. He was suddenly alert, perking up considerably from his thoughtful haze. A quick glance confirmed Lucina's hand was twitching, meaning only good.

He leaned slightly to watch the princess open her eyes. "Princess Lucina?"

"Axl...I...I need to talk...to Gefangene..."

Axl's voice dropped a pitch as his armor changed to Gefangene's color. "I'm here, princess. What is it?"

Lucina gasped in pain slightly, wincing. "We...We didn't kill him. He's not dead."

Despite a name not being spoken, a pit was already forming in Gefangene's stomach. "What? No...no, no...are you...?"

"It's Fox, Gefangene. He's alive. And he has Father and X."

The chair he was sitting in clattered to the ground as he stood up. For a moment, he was frozen in place, red eyes showing absolute terror. Then, he turned tail and became a white and lavender streak as he fled the medical room.

Just down the hall, a small gathering at the Vanguard Hall was being held. With the Vanguard themselves, Eirika was facing everyone, holding a stack of files close. The other people present were Carla, Shiro, and a woman in green who had introduced herself as Robina the Hood, and nothing more.

Eirika was speaking, looking down slightly. "Lucina is the princess of Ylisse. She was one of the many valuable soldiers needed to end the Otherworlder War years ago."

"I keep hearing that term," Robina noted. "What exactly was this...war?"

"Well...This isn't the first time worlds connected. A man hungry for power connected many worlds in a bid to gain highly capable soldiers. The Otherworlder War was instigated by the heroes of all the worlds to stop the project. We had succeeded, but many of these soldiers were created. We call them Otherworlder Reploids."

"I'm going off on a limb here and assuming that the lemon guy is one of them?" Lucy guessed.

"Well, his name is Rowan," Carla stated in a bit of a cold manner.

The woman raised her hands in defense. "I don't have time for an introductory scene."

The right-hand of the Cocoon continued. "We killed the man that started the war, and entered a stage of peace for a total of five years. However, we're in a new war, but on a much larger scale."

Shiro frowned. "Who was this man? The one that started the war?"

On cue, the door burst open, and all seven looked to see Gefangene fall to the ground. He supported himself there, gasping and heavily breathing.

Immediately, Eirika set down her files and rushed over. "Gefangene? Gefangene!" Kneeling down, she placed both her hands on his shoulders. "You've never done this before!"

"I know, I know, but...He's still alive!" The man nearly sobbed out.

"What are you talking about? What's wrong?"

"FOX IS STILL ALIVE!"

Everybody went silent. Those words seemed to echo through the hall, faint sounds signifying it bouncing back to shake around in their skulls. Eirika had just described a warlord, and now they had just learned he had never died at all.

Gefangene continued, still shaking. "I heard it...from the princess...He has Exalt Chrom and Mega Man X..."

"Who and who?" Lucy spoke first.

Carla raised a hand slightly. "Exalt Chrom is the ruler of Ylisse, one of the kingdoms in one of the many worlds. Mega Man X is a hero at least, a legend at best. Both were summoned by my initial spell to bring the Alliance together, but both also quickly left to take care of situations in their own worlds. I haven't heard from them since."

"So where would they be?" Robina questioned. "We cannot save them if we don't know where they are."

Ikora sighed. "If Lucina does not know, we do not know. Without the knowledge, we cannot take any course of action."

"Until we get proper information, I will excuse myself." Without another word, Carla left the Vanguard Hall.

The Hunter Vanguard huffed. "She avoids me like I'm the plague. It's weird. She's so off-putting, and I don't like her."

Carla, having overheard those words, faltered in her stone-faced expression as she headed down the hall. The Hunter Vanguard barely knows any of her story, and she would prefer it to stay that way.

Before she could even turn the corner, she wisely stepped back, because Rowan was barreling down the hall. Only skidding to a stop last second before he crashed into the wall, his head turned to look at her.

"Did Gefangene go this way? He looked really scared about something!"

"Yes, but he's currently in a meeting. Do not disturb it."

"Oh. I just wanted to ask him what was wrong."

Carla crossed her arms and looked away. "If you want to know, the man named Fox has yet to die. He faked his death."

Immediately, Rowan's entire demeanor changed. From worried to pale-faced shock and horror, the chrono angel looked bewildered at the sudden change of personality. "Wh...What?"

Immediately, she found herself speaking before she could stop herself. "What did Fox do to you? You obviously are terrified of him."

Rowan stepped back, looking at his feet. His brow was creased, indicating he was either thinking or worried in some manner. "I can't face him again."

"Again? Are you alright?"

The dethroned king gave a hollow laugh in return. "I haven't been for years." He lifted his arm, smoothing down the jacket sleeve on it. Under it, he could feel the cold metal exterior of his frame. "I used to be of flesh. Like you. Not metal. I could feel, taste, laugh without care...all that changed when Fox attacked. He burned my kingdom to the ground...killed my mother..." He faltered. "Turned me into this..."

What usually was a cold and glaring woman was replace with one of sympathy and understanding. Finally, she had a valid reason for Rowan's odd behavior around most people he didn't know, his frontal, chatty behavior causing many people to quickly flee the conversation.

Carla let her ice walls down, just for once, she promised herself. "I...I'm sorry."

Still holding his arm, Rowan let both of them drop to his sides. "I can't face him again. I don't want to remember the horrible things he's done to me..."

"You don't have to," Carla reasoned. "You can just stay in the Tower until we've rooted him out. With people capable of amazing things here, one Reploid like him doesn't stand a chance."

"...Okay." Rowan nodded. "I-I'll do that."

Carla merely nodded before walking away. Just like that, she was back to her normal self, and would most likely deny being so gently-spoken to Rowan like that. But while she merely shrugged off the moment, it planted itself so deeply in Rowan's chest. That was one of the first nice gestures he's been given in years.

Maybe that was the moment, he thought to himself. Maybe that was the moment he fell in love with the angel of secrets and mystical abilities.

Minutes, then hours crept by. Rowan's initial horror and fear melted into a mere nagging feeling at the back of his head, banging around like a throbbing migraine. Those were easier to ignore than fresh, raw terror, so he did his best in carrying out the day.

However, as always, good days for him never lasted long. He was reminded that as he was slinking out of the Tower. He had never gotten a room directly inside of it, and instead hung around the City at night, not requiring sleep. He simply explored it alone, taking in his surroundings.

Abruptly, just as he was going down a now empty street, he stopped. His hand flew up to his chest and gripped the shirt that hung over it. He had suddenly gained a very bad feeling, and he had a feeling it wouldn't go away.

"Hello, Rowan."

Rowan spun around. Right behind him, a brown-haired man in purple armor sat calmly at a vacated table. However, he could recognize him just by the scarlet red cape. "Fox..."

"It has been a very long time." Fox idly twirled a violet axe in his hands. "Five years, correct? Where I have been staying, I don't think time flows correctly."

Immediately, Rowan pulled out his blade. Without hesitating, he flicked it, and it shot out into its whip form. "Why aren't you DEAD?!"

Fox huffed and raised a hand. Instead of the blade piercing his palm, it harmlessly deflected off of a suddenly forming bubble of darkness around the unfazed man. Rowan could only watch in fear, the sword returning back to its more dormant state.

"You...You can use magic?" Rowan questioned, voice tremoring.

"Surprised, aren't you? Yes, I can." Fox stood up, letting the axe vanish into smoke.

"Then...are you behind the Umbrati attacks?"

"Oh, no. The Shadow Queen is still the one commanding them. I'm just a mere advisor to her. Though now that I put it that way, I can see I have SOME influence on the Umbrati attacks..." Fox frowned, tapping a finger on his lips. "That being said, I've been thinking of a name for the war. How about the Alliance-Umbra War? Or is that too basic?"

Rowan tried his luck once again, and charged forward, screaming. All he got was the whipblade yanked out of his hands and a kick to his face, sending him crashing onto the ground. He groaned, trying to push himself back up, but feeling a sudden weight on his back.

Fox chuckled, grinding his foot into where Rowan's spine would be. "You know, I came here looking for you. And you just merely made your way to me. How lucky I am."

"You...were looking for me?" Rowan could already tell that didn't bode well for him.

"I was planning to bring you back to my domain." On cue, Fox's hand burst into black flames. "The Umbra Mondo."

A sudden wind made Rowan's hair fly. He looked over in the direction of it coming from and gasped. Just before them, a vortex of darkness was forming, opening its gaping maw.

"Take one last good look around you, Rowan," Fox mused. "For it will be the last time you see this place. I hoped you've told your close friends and family you love them. Oh, I'm sorry." He grinned wickedly. "You have nobody like that."

As if she was waiting for a sign, a large blur of blue slamming into Fox from behind. With bright blue wings formed on her back, Carla pressed Fox up against the wall, lance positioned just under his chin as her veins pulsed blue.

"You must be the man I've heard so much about," Carla growled, casting her glow everywhere.

"C...Carla?!" Rowan exclaimed.

"I now know it wasn't emotion that drove me to follow you. It was logic. Logic that Fox would target you specifically."

"Wait, you...you followed me?"

Fox cut off their conversation with a laugh. "Are you sure it wasn't emotion? Logic doesn't override everything."

Carla gave one glance at Rowan, who was getting back up. She seemed to start to say something, but decided against it when she noticed Rowan wasn't really paying attention, instead focusing on standing.

That was all Fox needed. Grabbing a fistful of Carla's hair, he suddenly swung her with a large bout of strength off of him. Before she recovered properly, with one kick, she was sent careening into the portal.

Rowan looked up, eyes wide. "Carla!"

Fox sighed, shaking his head. "Oh, young love. Isn't that it? Why you're so worried for the damsel?"

"Wh-No! It's because she's my friend!"

"I doubt it. She'll most likely deny she even knows you. With that being said, I don't see why you should risk your life to save her. Like she'll ever do the same for you."

Fox expected Rowan to at least pause, or hesitate. However, his answer was almost immediate. "I don't care if she hates me! I wouldn't let anyone suffer the same fate I did at your hands, you bastard!"

Without further ado, Rowan charged into the portal, grabbing the whipblade from the ground. It was like he had shaken off all his fear, all hints of terror at the hands of Fox, and risked it just to save one girl that most likely hated him.

The environment Rowan tumbled out in was unfamiliar. Feet planting onto black sand, he looked up and around, eyes wide. All around him, the coal-colored ground was either sandy or hard and cracked. From out of it sprouted long, black spires that could easily be used to pierce somebody, judging by how sharp they were. The sky was completely black, no sign of the sun, moon, or stars anywhere. Rowan didn't even have a shadow, instead sticking out as the only bright thing in the area.

"What are you doing here?" Rowan looked to see Carla just a few feet away, surprised by him suddenly entering.

"Well, I came for you!" He simply answered.

"I needed no saving."

"I don't want anybody to suffer at Fox's hands. Not even people who hate me."

"...I don't hate you. At the very least, you just irritate me from time to time."

"You...You don't?"

"No, so don't think of me like that."

Rowan looked around. "What is this place?"

Carla raised her lance, ready for anything to strike. "I've only heard of this place from stories with the chrono angels. Nothing but darkness, with no way for light to even exist in this void. The Umbra Mondo, the home of the Shadow Queen and her Umbrati. No angel's ever been in it before, then escaped to speak of anything beyond what we already know."

"So, I can presume it's not easily accessed."

"I've had the best teachers, and none of them even had the faintest clue."

"Well, we can't focus on that, now." Rowan held his blade in one hand. "We need to find Chrom and X. If Fox had captured them..."

"No doubt, he'll put them in a place that can't be reached," Carla finished. "In other words, the Umbra Mondo."

Rowan began stepping to one of the spires. "Maybe if we climb up on one of these, we can get a better view..."

A bright blue glow illuminated the area, Carla's wings forming and spreading out to take up a large amount of space. "Of course." Without another word, she flew up a distance, landing on top of the spire.

As she left, Rowan perked up at a noise and immediately got his back to the spire. Blade ready, he narrowed his eyes, ready for Fox to appear and attack.

Not only did Fox never appear, he could identify the sound as heavy, labored breathing, with sounds of glitching, indicating it was a Reploid. Rowan peeked around the spire, confused.

A man supported himself on the other side. With a blue jacket over a white shirt and hood, his black jeans were torn, and synthetic blood dripped out. A red bandanna hung around his neck. Brown boots were scuffed by either fighting or the environment of the Umbra Mondo. His right hand was a buster, but it was completely caved in, broken beyond use.

The messy brown hair and blue color scheme was a dead ringer for Rowan. "Mega Man X?"

Immediately, he defended himself from being punched in the face. Ducking, he grabbed X by the arm and pinned him to the spire, a hand on his head.

"Hey, hey! I'm not an enemy!"

There was a pause, and X looked. "R-Rowan?"

Rowan looked up at skidding noises, and watched Carla slide down the spire and land next to them. "You must be Mega Man X. You can let him go now."

He quickly did so. "Sorry. Sorry."

Carla quickly grabbed X to try and support him when he stumbled. "Are you alright?"

"It's best if...you get out..." He choked. He seemed to be severely injured.

"Well, how do we get out to begin with?" Rowan questioned.

The chrono angel frowned. "I...don't know."

"Well, where's Chrom?" The boy asked X. "Wasn't he with-?"

"DUCK!" Carla quickly dropped to the ground.

All three of them did so. A golden blur went over them and slammed right into the spire. Rowan sat up to look at the sword slowly being removed, black chunks of the rock falling out and an obvious indent in it.

X flinched. "There he is."

Chrom looked completely different than he did five years ago. Instead of his normal outfit, he wore extremely dark clothing that lowered his entire body and lower part of his head. Shadows were over his glowing blue eyes, and a giant sword was connected to the wrist, the one used to try and decapitate the three of them.

Rowan looked shocked. "E-Exalt Chrom?"

"Surprised?" All looked to see Fox merely sitting on the spire Carla was just standing on. "But he doesn't go by Chrom anymore. He answers to Mirage."

X gritted his teeth. "What did you do to Chrom?"

"I didn't want to participate in the catch and release game. I felt like I should have just relaxed today. So, I used the ability of darkness to consume the exalt. I don't think you knew you could do that, did you?"

Carla drew her lance. "Then I guess that means we have to fight him."

"I don't want to hurt the exalt!" Rowan exclaimed, but still raised his sword.

"We have to, because he has no qualms about hurting us!" Carla darted forward, weapon by her side.

Both Mirage and Carla clashed blades, sparks flying. Carla replied heavily on agility and speed, working fast to navigate herself between the sword swings. However, it was obvious Chrom has studied the blade longer than her, anticipating her attacks and managing to feint and deflect.

Rowan knew Carla was already losing. "Carla, we have to get out of here!"

"Yea, well, Mirage won't let-" The large blade went under Carla's arm and across her side. Blood immediately began to pool out, soaking into her white outfit. "AGH! Dammit!"

"Carla!" Rowan yelped.

The angel gritted her teeth. "I'm fine! I'm fine! Just-!" She was cut off by another slash, one right across her breasts. "GAH!"

The boy immediately ran forward as Carla fell on her knees. His entire body was so bright in the environment, he seemed to glow golden. "LEAVE HER ALONE!"

Something truly remarkable happened. When Rowan's blade cut through the air, a golden slash was left on Mirage's chest. Glowing yellow flakes of pure power seemed to sparkle in the air before fading, leaving Rowan in a stupor of what he had just done.

As the glow from the sudden attack faded, Rowan reached out slightly. "Chrom...?"

"What did you do...?" Unlike the normal Chrom, Mirage's voice had hostility etched into every syllable. "What...did you do to me...?!"

"Ch-Chrom, I didn't mean...!"

"You need to go."

"Huh?"

For a moment, Chrom's eyes were normal, but his arms were still up in black flames. "You...need to..." He suddenly slammed his entire body into Rowan. "GO!"

Just behind Rowan, X and Carla were supporting each other to stay on their feet. Due to Rowan being shoved back, all three were sent into a portal of darkness just looming behind them.

In a desperate bid, the young man reached out to Chrom watching them. "CHROM!" He screamed just before the portal closed, kicking them out of the fabled Umbra Mondo.

Fox huffed, watching the scene. He didn't let it show, but he was internally stressing out. "Well, what was that? Rowan has powers of light? I didn't know. Perhaps I shall talk with her Highness on the matter." He dropped onto the sandy, hard ground. "Come along, Mirage." He beckoned a finger forward.

Chrom stumbled forward, like a puppet on strings. "Y...Yes...Fox..."

The Umbra Mondo wasn't that far from functioning like a kingdom. And all kingdoms had their capitals. So, the capital of the Umbra Mondo was the grand city called the Shadow's Heart.

Fox has been in the queen's employment for five years, so he was well known. As he and Mirage walked along, various Umbrati growled in their language that he has learned at this point to survive in the Umbra Mondo. Most of it were 'hello's, but the occasional was a warning for him to cease his more questionable actions. You cannot do many actions without a few despising what you do.

Fox entered the castle and looked around. With purple velvet tapestries and rugs going all around the ebony black castle, the only lighting came from candles lit by lavender flames. Not a single bright color was in sight, leaving many hotheaded people vying for a makeover.

The Reploid gestured at Mirage. "Go to the infirmary. Check up on your injuries."

"Yes, Fox." He quickly left, hurrying in his steps.

Fox went up the steps, his footsteps echoing in the empty area. The staircase curved slightly to reach the second floor, which was able to look down upon the entrance. With his hand on the railing, he traced its carved design as he stepped forward to a large door.

Proceeding to slip through it, he bowed. "Your Highness."

At the end of the room, a spiky black throne sat there. On it, sat a woman in a long, pitch black dress with dark grey trimming. A crown of red and grey jewels was nestled into her short black hair. Both gloved hands were on the armrest of the throne, as if waiting for Fox.

Despite her threatening appearance, the queen's voice was filled with warmth. "Ah. Fox. Please enter."

He did so. "I must talk to you about the boy. Rowan."

"Rowan?" The Shadow Queen's interest was peaked. "What of him?"

"He and Carla...They got away."

The Shadow Queen laughed a bit. "It’s okay for letting them get away. You did get the soldier you praised about, right?"

Fox huffed. "Well. Yes. I would have removed his flesh and replaced it with metal, but-"

"I would prefer you not. That sounds painful. We've been friends for years, after you saving me from the Otherworlder War and helping me put our plan in action, but there are still things I don't approve of."

"The king of Aytolis. I could not anticipate one thing, something that we both feared. He has the powers of a Luxonia."

The Shadow Queen paused. "Then were we right then...? I’ll be back soon." She quickly got up and left, heels clicking underneath the dress.

Fox watches her leaving. He crossed his arms, furrowing his brow as the door closed behind her, making an echoing noise in the throne room.

"Did Rowan simply inherit Luxonia abilities? Or is he...?"

Speaking of Rowan, the boy found himself pacing in front of the medical room. Frowning, he looked extremely worried and stressed, hands clasped together tightly. On occasion, he would stop and study them, as if they had changed the last time he looked at them.

Lucina ran up, bandages on her head. "Is X inside?!"

"Yea. Fifth bed on the left." She started to enter. "Oh! Can I know how Carla is doing?"

"Of course. I'll be right back." The princess hurried inside.

Inside, X's buster hand was back to a normal hand, heavily bandaged. Gauze was evident on numerous parts of face, even covering one eye.

Lucina ran up to him. "X!" She leaned over, kissing his forehead.

X chuckled weakly, reaching up his uninjured hand to stroke Lucina's cheek. "Lucina, love..."

"How's Father?"

He frowned. "He's...He's taken by Fox. We couldn't save him..."

"I wish it didn't come to that," she whimpered. "But due to the data in you and Rowan, research has begun of creating access to the Umbra Mondo. How is Carla?"

Speaking of the devil, Carla in her bed huffed. She herself was in a hospital gown, bandages wrapping around her injuries. "Fine. Why do you need to know?"

"Rowan asked. Speaking of, I best tell him you are alright." Lucina began to leave.

"Wait." She looked back at the angel. "...Tell him I said thank you."

"For what?"

"For...For trying to save me in the Umbra Mondo. And checking up on me."

"Of course." Lucina left, leaving only the two in the otherwise vacant area.

X smiled at Carla. "I see you're growing to like him."

"What? No. I'm tolerating him."

Judging by her blush, Carla was lying.


	9. Sisters by Memory

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter:
> 
> -Seraphina/Sigma  
> -Fox  
> -The Shadow Queen  
> -Mirage
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> An amnesiac learns her identity spun by lies, and the mechanisms of the universe are explained in detail.

Her name was Seraphina, his name was Sigma, and that was all both knew.

Besides knowing the dark and damp stone enclosure she sat in was a cell, and that her right arm glowed blue underneath her robe whenever Sigma spoke in her mind, there was nothing else besides those bits of information. Everything else has been lost to history.

 _"Why don't we just escape?"_ The voice growled in the recesses of her head. _"Break the cell door, and let us flee."_

Seraphina raised a hand, as if to silence him. "We do not know where we are in this prison. We could be next to the door, or ten floors up. Until we know exactly what is between us and the exit, we must stay put, or an escape attempt will only put us in further danger."

 _"If we wait longer, execution will soon follow!"_ Sigma argued.

Still, the woman remained calm. "We have not died yet. It is a stalemate, and they are waiting for us to make the first move. So our first move must be perfect enough to escape the stalemate."

Seraphina doesn't remember what had brought them both to this situation. One year ago, she woke up with no recollection on who or where she was. Just a day after her awakening, Sigma's voice began, and so did the glowing arm. Neither know what caused it, but what they did know is that Sigma knew nothing, as well.

Their captors were certainly a strange bunch. They could lose their physical forms, instead traveling in a mass of darkness. Smoke would be left behind by the shapeless voids going up and down the halls. When was the last time either of them had heard footsteps besides Seraphina's?

Whatever last time was, it was currently now. The sound of metal boots could be heard echoing down the passageway their cell was nestled in to. Immediately, Seraphina was jolted out of her thinking and snapped her head up.

A white gloved hand knocked on the cell bars, and a face of a young man peered in, brown hair slicked down. "Hello, Seraphina."

"You know of me?" She questioned.

"Yes. Your captor has to know things about their prisoner."

The woman got on her feet. "Tell me. Why am I in this cell? Did I do something?"

"Oh? Do you not remember?"

"No. I know nothing beyond my own name and the second presence in my mind."

The man chuckled. "I presume that would be Sigma. Yes, I know of him, too."

"If you know of the both of us, you must know other information we don't," Seraphina surmised.

"You are truly a smart one. And I do. My name is Fox. I work as the advisor to the queen of this realm. She only goes by her title, the Shadow Queen, though I do know of her real name."

Seraphina crossed her arms. "You are not keen on sharing it, are you?"

"She prefers I do not speak of it."

"What is your business here?" The captive dared to ask.

"To release you and bring you before her." With that, Fox withdrew an ebony key, and inserted it into the lock. With a twist, he unlocked the door, and swung it open. "After you, milady." Seraphina took two steps forward. "And before you think of running away, I'll have you know this castle is surrounded by the large, grand city of Shadow's Heart. You wouldn't get far."

"I wasn't planning to," Seraphina curtly replied.

In her mind, she could hear Sigma say, _"Could he be lying?"_

After pulling on her robe to hide her glowing arm, she replied with, "I don't believe he is."

"Hm?" Fox looked behind him.

"Sorry. I'm used to replying to Sigma's comments out loud. After all, nobody is there to listen, so why just in my head?"

He looked away after seeming to consider something. "Get used to speaking to him only mentally. People will deem you crazy."

"Sometimes, the most sane people are deemed crazy because people are scared of them." Still, Seraphina followed closely behind Fox.

"Quite the philosopher. Her Highness will like you."

There it was. A little flash in her mind. Not from her, but from Sigma. Was it pride? Loathing? Whatever it was, it was quickly gone, most likely because Sigma knew she felt it from him.

The only light came from dim violet fire that lit torches lined on the walls. However, it was extremely dark, even with the scarce flames.

"I recommend you stay on night vision," Fox commented. "Otherwise, you wouldn't be able to see at all."

Seraphina blinked, and everything gained a deep green tint. "Why is everything so dark?"

"We are, after all, in the realm of darkness itself. The creatures in it detest light, so they use as little as possible." Fox placed his hand on a door, then paused. "However, the throne room is normally lit, so night vision is not required in it."

"The queen is fine with light?"

"She is not Umbrati. She needs the light to see correctly." The man pushed the door open, letting a creak resonate in the area.

With a few more blinks, Seraphina's eyesight went back to normal. Looking inside, she could see the purple rug going from the door to the throne that seemed to be carved from obsidian.

"Welcome, both of you." The Queen greeted them warmly. "Fox. Seraphina."

Seraphina bowed, though Fox didn't. "Greetings, your Highness."

"No need to bow. I am seeking out friendship, not respect due to position. You can approach." The Queen beckoned a gloved hand forward.

She did so. "If I must ask-"

"You will get your answers," Fox interrupted. "And I believe the first questions would be of your identity."

"Um...Y-Yes. That would be nice."

The Shadow Queen stood up. "Then let's go somewhere with a more friendly atmosphere. I have a private room where we can discuss over drinks."

Respectfully, Seraphina curtsied. "I would like that."

"Then come along." Smiling, the Queen moved over to the left side of the room, Fox right behind her. Seraphina noted that wherever the queen walked, a thin trail of black smoke would rise up from where her foot just was before dissipating. Shrugging it off, Seraphina resumed to following the two.

Even though there was a decent amount of light, Seraphina was surprised that she couldn't see the outline of a door on the wall. It was the exact same color as the stone walls, blending in like a chameleon.

The Queen pressed it open with a gentle hand. "No Umbrati knows this door exists. I would like you to not speak of it. It's a more private room."

"Of course." The young woman nodded.

"Thank you." The Queen stepped inside, and both followed her.

The room was much more bright and homely. A large fireplace was roaring with it's brilliant purple fire in the wall. In the center of a room was a large, circular table close to the ground, with pillows all around it to sit on. Frames with no paintings hung on the walls, and a shelf held books of all kinds.

The Queen sat on the pillow farthest from the door, knees underneath her. "Have a seat."

Seraphina did so. "If I must ask, why are there four pillows?"

"Because there is a fourth person coming. His name is Mirage. Do you remember him?"

"Hm? No...It doesn't sound familiar."

"Really, now? How odd. Fox stated you two knew each other."

Fox nodded. "I believe you two were past lovers. Perhaps if you saw him, you would recognize him."

The Shadow Queen conducted her hand, and Seraphina looked surprised as a black teapot materliazed into her hands. It let out a wave of smoke as it settled into both of her hands. "Tea? It's made from Griso Blossoms."

"I'll have some. Thank you."

Fox raised a hand. "I will pass."

Seraphina watched a stream of deep purple liquid be poured into a cup forged in the same manner as the teapot. "I've never heard of Griso Blossoms."

"Oh, they're beautiful. My personal garden is full of them. After this, I'll love to take you to them." The Queen handed the cup to Seraphina, who gratefully took it.

"If I don't sound rude, may I please have some answers as to who both Sigma and I are?"

"Of course. We just need to wait for your lover."

All three looked as there was a knock on the door. "Milady?" Came muffled from the other side.

Seraphina seemed surprised, listening with sudden intent. "The voice sounds familiar."

The Queen clapped her hands in joy. "Oh, it's Mirage." She raised her voice to speak to him. "You can come in!"

After a moment, the door creaked open. Seraphina watched as a man clad entirely in blue walked in, looking around.

The Queen gestured to the empty pillow. "You can sit next to Seraphina."

"S...Seraphina?" Slowly, Mirage sat down. With his open hand, he placed a palm on Seraphina's cheek. "Love?"

For a moment, Seraphina didn't respond. He was familiar, but the name didn't ring a single bell. Yet, just staring at him awakened emotions in her. That had to be what romantic love was.

Doing the best she can really do in that situation, she reached up a hand and clasped Mirage's with it. "I don't remember you, but...But I know you're not lying. I am your love."

"Sera...Sera..." Mirage hiccuped, crying into the fabric that covered the lower half of his mouth. "Love..." He clasped her hand tightly. "I haven't...haven't seen you for so long..."

Sigma growled in her mind. _"I do not like this feeling he gives you. Kill him."_

Deciding to simply think of her just rolling her eyes instead of doing it physically, Seraphina smiled back. "Tell me. What was I like?"

"What weren't you? You had both brains and brawn. Beauty and power." Mirage sounded on the verge of tears. "You've been gone for over five years, and I've missed you so...so dearly."

Fox cleared his throat. While the Queen was perfectly content with this chain of events, he was in a more awkward situation. "How about you explain to the two...our situation?"

"Hm?" The Shadow Queen looked confused at first, then snapped out of it. "Oh! Yes. I'm sure you have many questions. For one, the fate of your kingdom."

"Our kingdom?"

"You are actually the queen of a kingdom," the Queen put it simply. "Along with Mirage."

Seraphina gasped. "Really?"

"Yes! Amazing, right?" The Queen laughed a bit.

"Then why am I a Reploid?"

The Queen hummed thoughtfully, staring into her teacup. "From what I heard, you were caught in a fatal accident that required you to converge from human to Reploid to save your life. Am I right?"

"Yes..." Mirage raised an eyebrow, though it was hard to tell. "What do you mean, the fate?"

At that, the Shadow Queen pressed her thumbs together, hands into fists as she looked downwards. "Fox informed me...that it was destroyed."

While Seraphina didn't know how to truly react to that news, Mirage was rendered completely silent. His entirely blue eyes stared at the Queen for a long while until he finally spit out, "What?"

"Everything is gone," the Shadow Queen repeated. "Our enemies destroyed it all."

"...I...My home...Our home...Gone...?"

"Your enemies?" Seraphina questioned.

"Yes. Before I took the throne, your kingdom was in league with the Umbra Mondo, and any enemy of ours was an enemy of yours. However, our enemies are very powerful people. It was truly only a matter of time before you were attacked, but...we didn't expect the results to be so catastrophic."

Seraphina gulped. A sudden chill has run down her spine at that, and the teacup almost shook in her hands. She gulped down most of it to try and calm herself. "O-Okay...So why was I in a cell for a year?"

"Because our enemies had brainwashed you," the Shadow Queen replied. "Just a year ago, you had attacked Fox outside of the Umbra Mondo, swearing to kill him. He knocked you out and brought you back here, and we removed the corruption as best as we could. I say as best because..."

"Because that is how I lost my memories," Seraphina concluded. "You couldn't remove the corruption without removing my memories in the process."

"It was more of an unintended side effect, but...yes, that can be a conclusion. Another side effect was the...how should I put it...?"

Seraphina quickly took the cake by finishing her thought with, "Parasitic warlord in my head?"

_"I am NOT a PARASITE, foolish girl!"_

The Queen nodded. "Y...Yes. Honestly, we have no idea what caused that. Not even Fox, who supervised your purging, and knows exactly how Reploids worked."

Fox looked at Seraphina, and she felt as if she had frozen in place. While the Shadow Queen's blood red eyes held warmth, Fox's completely normal green eyes were cold and piercing. "In any case, it was too dangerous to remove it, so we locked you up to see how you would fare with the second voice. Once we knew you were stable on some level, we let you out."

Mirage held up a hand. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but...who are these enemies that..." He slowly clenched a fist. "Destroyed my kingdom? My...My home?"

The Shadow Queen took a sip from her tea. After a pause, she lowered it from her lips. "In order to tell you, you'll have to understand how the universe is laid out." She seemed to think for a moment. "Imagine a puzzle with three large pieces and numerous small pieces. The small pieces connect each large piece together, making a line of small pieces in between each large piece."

Seraphina frowned at the analogy. "That is an oddly-shaped puzzle, but continue."

"One of these large pieces is the place we reside in now, the Umbra Mondo. No light exists here. It is the complete embodiment, the source of all darkness. The piece on the complete opposite side is the Lux Mondo. Seeing what the Umbra Mondo is, do you know what the Lux Mondo is?"

"The source of all light?" Mirage guessed.

"Exactly. The Lux Mondo and its residents embody all light known in the universe. Now, the middle piece is a balance between these two. We call them the realms of balance, worlds made of both light and darkness."

"So then, what are the smaller pieces?" Seraphina questioned. "Why are they there?"

"Well...The realms of balance are not just one big piece, per say. Say that they are numerous, smaller pieces. Each piece of the realm of balance is an individual timeline. We exist right now beyond those timelines. The smaller pieces surrounding them are the Walkways."

Mirage tilted his head. "The Walkways?"

"The way to travel from each timeline. The residents of the Walkways hold immense power over time itself, but their abilities really have no effect in the Umbra Mondo and Lux Mondo. We exist beyond the timelines, which they control."

The pieces were already coming together. "So, if we are the embodiment of darkness, I can say that the enemies you speak of is the Lux Mondo?" Seraphina questioned.

"Precisely. Since the birth of this universe, the Umbra Mondo and the Lux Mondo have never found peace. Daily, timelines are consumed by either light or darkness in a bid to gain more ground. While there are no fights, there is a struggle for ultimate power."

"I'm just questioning...what would happen if one side wins?" Mirage asked.

The Queen's answer was grim. "The universe must have an equal balance of light and darkness. If we win, or they win, the balance will be overthrown, and the universe will destroy itself."

While that was certainly chilling, Seraphina scowled at a still-lingering question. "If since the beginning of the universe, both sides have been consuming timelines altogether, how come the timelines have not been rendered basically extinct?"

"That is a good question. As timelines are destroyed daily, new ones are being created daily, out of different choices being made in influential decisions."

Fox surprisingly had a question of his own. "Are us destroying the timelines the reason the residents of the Walkways have labelled us as enemies?"

"W-Well..." The Queen sighed. "Yes. Most likely."

"The Umbra Mondo is an enemy to the Walkways?!" Mirage exclaimed.

"It's not like we have a choice. In order to keep the balance, we have to consume timelines the same rate as the Lux Mondo does. This aggravates the Walkway residents. Sometimes, they use their powers to make timelines immune to being consumed. We leave those ones alone."

Seraphina huffed. "Well, then aren't the Lux Mondo people enemies to the Walkways, too?"

"...No."

All three stared at the Queen. Mirage couldn't show expression right, and Fox was more puzzled, but Seraphina's shock was clear on her face.

"What?!" She exclaimed. "But why?!"

"Because isn't it always the darkness that is evil, and the light is noble and heroic? Nobody wants to disobey those classic teachings. So why accuse both sides of war when you can accuse the evil ones?"

Seraphina suddenly stood up. "But you are not evil! In fact, you've been nothing but nice to me and everyone here!"

Fox narrowed his eyes. "Your Highness, sit down immediately. Do not shame yourself."

The Queen raised a hand. "No. I understand her anger. Let her speak."

"Shadow Queen, you are a very sweet person. Even if you have a terrifying...look, I cannot ignore your selfless and thoughtful actions!" Seraphina pressed a hand to her chest. "Which is why I wish to help you. I want to stay here in the Umbra Mondo!"

The Queen looked shocked. "Seraphina..."

"If you tell me not to, I do not care. I cannot let a sane person get accused as crazy and evil by people scared of her. If I have no life waiting for me in the realms of balance, I will make a new life here. One filled with purpose and loyalty!"

Mirage stood up. "Sera...Do you wish to do this?"

"I will not hesitate in doing so."

"Then I will not let you do this alone." Mirage bowed. "Shadow Queen, I swear to stay loyal and faithful to your cause, as any good man with honor shall!"

Fox huffed. "You were already employed to us, Mirage."

However, the Shadow Queen was flattered. "Oh, you two..." She sniffled, them beamed. "Thank you! As long as you stay here, I shall in return treat you with kindness and compassion!"

Mirage smiled underneath his clothes, brushing away strands of his hair. "You already were, milady."

The Queen let the teacups from the table vanish. "Well. Is anyone hungry? I have pastries!"

Seraphina smiled at that, sitting back down. "Oh? I would like to have some."

"Me too." Mirage stated, and he dropped back onto his pillow.

Fox rolled his eyes and stood up. "I will be doing important work. Excuse me." He marched out, slipping through the door.

Smoke began to curl and writhe in the center of the table. "You will be missing out, Fox!" The Queen cheerfully called.

"I do not eat!" His voice was faint was he was walking away.

Seraphina laughed. "I may be robotic, but I can enjoy pastries just fine! Oh, what are these?"

Mirage pulled down his scarf, a cupcake in hand. "Oh. Those are canelés. You loved those." He bit into the cupcake.

As the Reploid took a canelé, the Queen smiled. "What does your inner voice say, Seraphina?"

_"Let us leave now. I will vomit if we stay here any longer at this foolish tea party."_

"...He's fine with it." Seraphina bit into the canelé. Immediately, she began hopping in her seat. "Wow! I can see how I like this! This is delicious!"

_"I said let us leave."_

"Remember, Seraphina, after this, I'm going to show you my personal garden and all the Griso Blossoms I've grown!"

"That sounds like fun, Shadow Queen!"

_"Whatever god exists, strike me down in this instant."_


	10. Tale of Two Thugs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter:
> 
> -Lucy-1  
> -Echo  
> -Madelyn
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> Some lesbian goodness to soothe the soul.

Echo was staring up at the Hunter Vanguard. She was lying on a set of crates in the hangar, spread out like a lazy cat. "What's in it for me?"

"Are you serious?" Lucy groaned. "You get the full payment, you get out, you have fun. Happy?"

"Normally, I would be, but..." The assassin clicked her tongue. She balanced one of her plasma daggers on her finger. "I don't know, everyone's in a gay mood."

"Well...Yea, everyone's relatively happy..." The younger Reploid noted.

"No. I meant gay, as in gay gay. Like, everybody who isn't straight has somebody to get down with except me."

Another groan. "No, that's not true."

"Then open your eyes. Look around, count how many gay couples there are."

Lucy did so, eyebrow raised. There was Takumi and Leo, walking along with fingers entwined, Dynamo bugging Cedar, who kept denying even a hint of friendship between them, eliciting confusion for many, and the captain Shiro conversing with her buddy Zavala. She even pointed at each couple slightly, murmuring the counting under her breath.

"Um...Three." She displayed the number on her fingers.

Echo looked up from her dagger. "Are you kidding me? The Tower ain't THAT gay. There's two."

That just brought out a laugh. "No, I count three."

"Whatever. Point is, they all got men, lovers...I want a lady, you hear? Someone that makes me feel good."

"Do you mean figuratively or literally?"

Echo considered that. "...Depends on my mood."

This only irritated Lucy further, and she glared at Echo. "I'm just asking you to help a friend of mine. Since I became the Hunter Vanguard, it's been difficult for me to do that."

"And you aren't looking for any payment?"

"No! I just want somebody to help! You can accept all of the payment as your own! Happy?"

"Very." Swinging her legs, Echo pushed herself onto her feet. "But seriously, can you see which ladies here are avail-"

"No."

"Fine, be a sourpuss." The redhead began to leave. "Where am I heading?"

"Just outside the City. Madelyn said she'll be on a ridge. Just follow the campfire smoke."

At that, Echo's head almost did a 180 as she immediately looked back at Lucy. "...It's a girl?"

"...Yes?"

"Is she cute?"

The Hunter Vanguard paused for a minute. "...Purple hair with brown eyes, dark skin, and some freckles?"

"Later!" Echo bolted out almost immediately, leaving the entire Tower in the dust.

"...What just happened?" Lucy let herself wonder, eyes open and mouth agape.

It didn't take long for Echo to get outside the City. While most people took the streets, Echo preferred the more scenic route of the rooftops. Plus, she's always taken rooftops over streets, and was just more comfortable with the chosen path.

Sure enough, true to Lucy's word, there was a small line of smoke going up from a rocky ridge that towered above Echo's head, just a little bit into the distance. There was also the occasional gunshot, meaning that Fallen were being attracted to the flame like she was. Taking the trek from the City to the ridge was no problem, and now, Echo stared up at her obstacle.

The normal route was out of the question. It was probably littered with those bugs, and the chances of getting accidentally shot were a little bit too high for Echo's liking. What she did prefer, however, was the idea of climbing up from the side.

Two plasma daggers were drawn off of her belt. With them glowing lavender, she tested for a good spot by randomly stabbing with one dagger until it stuck. When it did, she pulled on it until she was satisfied at the evident sturdiness. She gave herself a little bounce before she began climbing, stabbing the earth with her daggers to pull herself up with.

Just at the top, a slew of empty bullets clattered to the ground. Muttering something under her breath, the woman holding the rifle glared as a row of Fallen dropped dead. Watching their blood spill out, she grabbed another piece of wood and threw it into the fire, watching the flames absentmindedly.

Madelyn looked as she heard somebody grunting. "This ridge...Looked a lot shorter..." Echo growled as she managed to get one arm onto the ridge's surface.

"You...must be the person Lucy-1 sent?" Madelyn guessed, raising an eyebrow.

After a push, Echo got her entire upper half on the surface. "Sure am! You must be Madelyn."

"I am. And your name is?"

"Echo. And you..." Echo pulled herself up the rest of the way. "Must be...a gift from whatever god exists!"

Instead of being flattered, Madelyn was slightly amused, giving a smile. "Are you flirting with me?"

"It's a common thing of mine, sweetheart. Flirting with the cute girls, and hoping I one day find one that isn't straight."

"Well, today's your lucky day. I'm lesbian."

Echo actually pumped her fist. "Lucky day indeed! You're cute as hell!" She looked around as Madelyn suddenly got hot in the face. "So, is there any caravan we need to defend?"

"W-Well...no. See, I'm just drawing out Fallen with the fire, and gunning them down when they come by. It makes it so the place is empty enough for the refugees to come in much more safer."

"And you do this alone?"

"Usually with a friend. It used to always be Lucy, but..." Madelyn paused, then sighed. "She's the Hunter Vanguard, now. She's got better things to do."

"Well, I don't got anything better to do." Echo shrugged. "Nobody I need to kill."

"...What are you, an assassin?"

"And a damn good one, at that. But don't worry. I only kill the bad guys. I just do it in ways that would make people think I'm a bad guy."

The woman stared at the Reploid. "Meaning...?"

"Meaning you're good. So is the Alliance."

Madelyn chuckled. "That's what they're calling themselves, huh? Nice little ring to it." She tossed in a pile of sticks, and watched them crackle and burn up. "Guess that means Lucy isn't really going to be available for me."

"You two good friends?" Echo guessed.

"Very. I was the one that saved her when she first woke up here. I helped her to the City, and after she cleaned herself up, she came back to repay the favor. But also partly because I was offering paying jobs."

"Hey, I knew her before she was Lucy." Echo crossed her legs. "Did you know she's a princess?"

"Get out. That's way too cliché."

"It hurts to say it, but yea. I was hired by law enforcement to kill her since she was on the enemy side. However, she beat me in a fair brawl-out. She would have definitely killed me...if she wasn't so naïve." Echo frowned. "She got me down, then helped me back up and repaired me. I don't know what caused her to do it, but I owe my life to her."

Madelyn looked up at Fallen noises, then checked to see if her rifle was loaded. "Sounds like she was a pretty sweet lady."

"More like a kid caught in the Otherworlder War."

"I've been hearing about that war a lot." Madelyn turned to face behind her, raising her rifle. "Sounded like a pretty brutal one."

"It barely hurt the world it took place in, but the people from the other worlds...their death counts were really heavy." Echo jumped a little when Madelyn opened fire. When the rifle stopped firing, she continued. "It's sad."

Madelyn glanced back. "You got family?"

"What? Um...No. My family ditched me a long while back."

The rifle stopped firing again, and Madelyn returned to fully facing the fire. "Parents died."

For a moment, Echo looked with sympathy. "Oh. What happened?"

"...I was a refugee myself. Never had a home that didn't get destroyed. Parents were hurrying me to the Last City. Both died before they got there, and I was left alone in the big wide world. Most kids die like that. I mean, I wasn't even close to the Last City."

"I'm taking it you didn't die."

"I grew up alone. Either hid from or killed Fallen. I wore their armor, since I was a growing child, and I couldn't stay in the same outfit for long. Had to have been...what, fifteen when I made it to the Last City. I didn't stay for long." Madelyn ran her hands over her rifle, gazing at it, but her mind was somewhere else. "I saw too many die on the way there. I wanted to not let that happen again. To anyone."

Echo looked surprised. "You went back, even though there was the chance you could die?"

"Hell yea I did."

"Weren't you scared?"

Madelyn laughed. "Petrified," she corrected. "I didn't want to go back. But I just thought of all those people in my situation and...I would die from guilt if I just hunkered down in the City."

"Well...Least you went back in the end. Had the bravery to." At that, Echo gave a dry laugh.

"...What happened with your family?"

"Can't even call it a family, you know? More like a gang. I was built by this kingpin dude, as a protector. I think I was built as a boy. I did protector stuff, mafia stuff. Killed people and such. Over time, I started questioning, 'Why do I protect this guy? He's rude, he treats me bad, his guys treat me bad...But none of them treat him bad! I bet it's the title. If I had the title, they wouldn't treat me badly!' So I killed him. I killed my creator."

Madelyn looked shocked. "Holy crap, Echo!"

"Well, he did a lot of bad things, so why would the world complain?" Echo shrugged a shoulder. "In any case, I thought I'll get the title, and I'll lead the gang. What I did get was getting torn up and being beat within an inch of my life before being tossed out. Sucks for them, though. I heard the gang collapsed later on."

"But...how did you live?"

"I think I got pitied on. Somebody took me in, repaired me..." Echo sighed dramatically. "But mistook me as a girl."

"So...You're transgender?" Madelyn guessed.

"I guess so. But I never learned who saved my life. I just was left after being repaired. Which doesn't make sense. Anyways, I started using my abilities against people who were doing bad things. After a bit, I started getting hired to do that. I guess I just transitioned into a chaotic good assassin at that point."

Madelyn looked up at the smoke rising. "Which brings us to today, huh?"

"You can say that, yea." Echo looked up herself.

Both sat in silence for a good while. Despite both of them occasionally turning to shoot down or throw a dagger into Fallen, there was nothing else that came from either of them.

"So..." Echo murmured, and Madelyn heard the sound of wrinkling paper wrapping. She turned her head to see a bag of taffy suddenly in the redhead's hand, and her opening it. "You like taffy?"

"Where did you keep that?"

"Data storage. All Reploids have it." Echo protruded one between two fingers, and held it out. "Here."

Madelyn slowly took it. Unwrapping it, she stared at the white and pink taffy for a bit before popping it in her mouth. "Thanks."

"Ask me if you want some more. I got plenty to share." Echo chewed on one, wincing a bit whenever it pulled on her teeth.

For the rest of the day, they settled into a routine. While Madelyn would shoot away at any Fallen that came to them like moths to the flame, Echo would munch away on taffy, occasionally sharing one. The assassin also played around with her apparently infinite daggers, tossing them at the ones that slipped past Madelyn or tried to sneak up on them with other methods.

When the sun began to set, Echo stretched, empty taffy bag in hand. "Mm...Looks like it's getting late."

Madelyn dusted her hands off on her shirt, though it's not like it did much. "I think I like taffy. I've never had it before."

"It comes in different flavors of that sticky goodness. You should go to some candy shop to grab a bag." Echo stood up. "I think we should start heading back."

At that, Madelyn laughed again. "Come on. You scared of the dark?"

"What? No. It's just that my natural instinct when nighttime comes is to get a power nap."

The young human patted the ground where Echo had just sat. "Then sleep here."

"Too noisy with your loud-ass gun. I won't get a wink."

"Eh, good point. I guess we've scared away most of those overgrown bugs, anyways." Madelyn began kicking dirt onto the fire, making it diminish in strength. "When we're heading back, we might scare up a few more."

As Madelyn stood up, Echo gave a grin. "On foot or those flying motorcycles?"

"I'll be going sparrow, thank you very much."

"Then I'll be walking. See you soon, sweet cheeks."

Something possessed a Echo in that moment. She snatched Madelyn's arm and, as if it was normal, gave her a light kiss on the cheek. Both immediately froze at the course of actions, but Echo tried to not let it show as she began scurrying off.

Immediately, she was grabbed in return. Her mind instantly began to think of her getting a punch to the face. Instead, Madelyn yanked her into a kiss on the lips, the purple-haired woman's eyes squeezed shut. Echo froze up completely, going rigid with her eyes wide.

Madelyn quickly pulled back before nodding. "Yea. Jobs are always open." Without another word, she began running down the ridge, skidding on the occasional rock.

Echo watched her go, still standing in place. Her mouth moved as if she was speaking, but no words came out. Finally, what did come out was a happy-sounding noise, with her eyes lighting up in happiness.

At the bottom, Madelyn stopped at cheers of joy. From the top, she could hear Echo shouting into the heavens, "A CUTE GIRL KISSED ME, AND SHE WASN'T DRUNK!" She almost laughed at the second part, only stopping to realize she's laughed more in the past few hours than she has in the whole week.


	11. Slips and Cracks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter: 
> 
> -Lucy-1  
> -Takumi  
> -Carla  
> -Talli  
> -Carla's uncle
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> A bit more of the concept of timelines is unveiled, specifically what happens when a chrono angel renders it immune to being consumed by the darkness or light.

Lucy found herself laughing, leaning down to stare at Takumi. "Well, well. Is that comfortable?"  
  
"Surprisingly, yes." Packed into a small corner underneath Lucy's desk, Takumi pulled on his overcoat to cover his face a bit more. "It also shields me from the more uptight people here."  
  
"What did you do this time?" The Hunter Vanguard teased.  
  
"May or may not have mixed some jalapeño spices into Commander's coffee." Takumi grinned to himself.  
  
"...Oh, so that's why Takashi ran out of the kitchen with an entire carton of milk!"  
  
"Those two are so buddy-buddy, I'm surprised they haven't kissed yet."  
  
Lucy laughed. "Come on, the Alliance hasn't been together that long."  
  
"Didn't your friend and Echo get together in less than a day?"  
  
Lucy considered that for a moment. "Mm...These guys are more uptight, you know?"  
  
Both jumped at the sudden, third voice belonging to Carla watching. "Just so you two know, only few chrono angels can actually see the future. I am not one of them, so I will tell you no, I will not be able to tell whether or not Shiro and Zavala get together."  
  
By being startled, Takumi whacked his head on the wood above him. "Ow..." Wincing, he rubbed it with his human hand. "Wasn't planning on asking..."  
  
As Takumi emerged from under the desk, Lucy sighed. "You need something, Ms. Ice Queen?"  
  
For some reason, Carla flinched at that, but showed no other response besides not meeting eye contact with the woman. "You do know of the concept of timelines, correct?"  
  
Lucy twirled a careless hand. "Yea, all the crazy, infinite, consuming crap. You ran it by all of us."  
  
"Did I tell you of a chrono angel's ability to make a timeline immune to being consumed?"  
  
Takumi rolled his eyes, a hand still resting on his head as he leaned onto the desk. "Literally the thing that started the whole speech off."  
  
"Then did I tell you of the side effects?"  
  
Lucy looked particularly shocked. "What do you mean, side effects?" Carla opened her mouth to speak. "What do you MEAN, side effects? You mean to tell me the one thing that you didn't tell us are the side effects, and the fact that there even are side effects?!"  
  
For a moment, Carla stayed silent before admitting, "To be honest, I had no idea that the side effects actually would occur. Nobody's made a timeline immune in quite a long time. There was no point to. Therefore, a lot of facts have become rumors and myths."  
  
"Okay, okay," Lucy replied. "So...What are these side effects?"  
  
"Time breaks," Carla simply answered. "Cracks in time that allow people and things to slip into this timeline. Say one person here is dead. That same person from another timeline could arrive here, and not be a single bit different from them."  
  
"I bet you're telling us now because one of these...time breaks has appeared?" Takumi guessed.  
  
"Correct."  
  
Lucy raised an eyebrow. "But why us instead of Zavala? He's the guy in charge right now."  
  
Carla hesitated for a moment. "Your daughter has brown hair and a dress, right?"  
  
"Uh...Yes?" The Hunter Vanguard suddenly felt a little uneasy.  
  
"I saw her enter a time break."  
  
For a long moment, Lucy didn't speak. Takumi watched her, waiting for her to move, but she didn't, instead just staring right at Carla. The mercenary was about to say something before she straightened up, grabbing her gun from the desk. "You can tell Zavala I'll be gone, right?"  
  
"You cannot go alone," the angel responded. "I must come with you. I am the only one who has the ability to close the time breaks."  
  
"Okay, okay, come along. Just be quick." Lucy jumped over her desk, and bolted for the ships. "I'm not waiting for anybody!"  
  
Takumi stood in place before raising a hand. "I'll...tell the commander."  
  
"Yes, that will be fine," Carla murmured before racing after the Hunter Vanguard.  
  
Lucy's ship only had one seat. Carla didn't mind at all. Instead, she simply leaned where there was room, looking out through the window. Holding on as the ship took off, she released her grip to cross her arms when they made it into a more steady cruise.  
  
"Where did you see the break?" Lucy questioned.  
  
"Cosmodrome," came the simple answer.  
  
The Hunter Vanguard gave one nod in return. "Yea. Got it." She started pressing her controls forward. "Dammit, how did Talli get that far out into the city?"  
  
"Perhaps she felt the time break as I did."  
  
Lucy looked back at Carla. "Sorry, felt?"  
  
"Haven't you noticed her eyes? They glow, like mine. She is as much as a chrono angel as I am. I felt a tug in my chest when the time break opened. She must have felt it too, and somehow followed it."  
  
The woman narrowed her eyes. "I did notice that, but-"  
  
"Honestly, why did you think she was found as an infant all alone in the middle of nowhere, with no trace of her parents or guardians?"  
  
"Okay, that's enough!" Lucy declared, and Carla closed her mouth immediately. "You're rubbing me the wrong way here, Carla."  
  
"H-How?" The chrono angel was uncharacteristically nervous.  
  
"I never told you where I found Talli as a baby, and you've never met her, much less even saw her eyes. How do you know so much about my daughter?"  
  
Carla didn't answer at first. Then, she responded, "I heard stories about her."  
  
"Stories?"  
  
"Stories about a baby born to be the strongest chrono angel in existence. Angels were in awe of her destined power, but also afraid. With darkness having been recently rising, it was decided that she would be removed from the Walkways until she was more grown before being brought back. Staying in the Walkways was too dangerous. More and more angels were being attacked and...consumed."  
  
"Wait. People...can get consumed, too?"  
  
Carla huffed. "Indeed. It happens to the strong-willed in consumed timelines. Umbrati have abilities to take other species and turn them into one of them. Chrono angels go to fight the darkness, only to never return. It was too dangerous for the baby to stay, and it was believed her powers would ward off the darkness for a time before she was ready to be brought back."  
  
Immediately, there was the clicking of a gun. Carla found herself on the receiving end of the Reaper's Hand, the muzzle pressed straight into her forehead. Lucy glared at her with such burning hate that she felt she would die under the stare.  
  
"Are you telling me you chrono angels are going to take my daughter away from me?" Lucy's voice was low, but threatening.  
  
Carla gulped. "Our plan WAS to, but-"  
  
The muzzle drilled in further. "Let me get this straight to you. Not a single one of your feathery friends are gonna come in and steal my girl. I'll shoot down every one that comes for her. You got it?"  
  
"Yes, I got it!" She stammered. "And you have nothing to fear! Our plans changed! She can stay!"  
  
Both women didn't move for a while. Finally, Lucy slowly removed the gun, stepping away from the shaking chrono angel. She walked back to the cockpit and sat herself back in the seat. Carla grasped at her chest, feeling her heart was ready to burst from the sharp turn of events.  
  
Echo, who had been watching the whole thing, turned to Carla and asked in a whisper, "You alright?"  
  
The chrono angel looked at the Ghost before nodding. "Yes. I am. Just..."  
  
"I think you earned a permanent spot on her bad side," Echo simply warned as the ship began to drop.  
  
"Hey, lady!" Lucy called. "I bet this is it!"  
  
Carla moved to the cockpit, but made sure to keep her distance from Lucy as she squinted to look through the glass. "I'm pretty sure that's it, too..."  
  
It seemed to be a literal rip in the air. The lines were jagged, no clean cuts evident. It was twice the size of the ship in length, but probably thrice in terms of width. Beyond it was a vortex of different shades of blue, ever shifting in and out. It definitely didn't look like the Walkways Carla was familiar to.  
  
"It leads into what we think are in between time breaks," Carla simply said. "They are made of the fabric of the Walkways, but aren't the Walkways. These...anomalies...are a crash course of timelines. A void from one to another."  
  
"And my daughter is in that void?" Lucy was already leaving the ship, Echo flying after her. "Echo, scan."  
  
"Hey, I'm trying, but these funky readings from the time break are really messing me up," the Ghost replied, light streaming from her eye. "Even if Talli was in there, I doubt I could pick up her lifeform."  
  
Lucy checked her ammunition as she talked. "Okay, here's the deal. I do the shooting, you do the looking. We grab Talli, we get out, then you work your magic on this break thing. Does that sound good?"  
  
"Yes, but...as a plan, it might need some other adjustments."  
  
"Don't care. We're pressed for time as it is. Does entering a time break do anything to your physical or mental health?"  
  
"What? No! Well, not that I know of..."  
  
Lucy shrugged a shoulder. "Good enough for me, dammit!" She charged straight first into the break, and promptly vanished into the void of blue.  
  
Echo looked at Carla. "Well, see you there."  
  
"Of course."  
  
Inside the void, what had to be miles away, small feet ran along on the best imitation of the ground. They went in a circle, doubled back, then went forward again.  
  
Talli sniffled, then cried out. "Hello? Is anybody here?" She wiped away a few tears. "Oh...I wish that blue light didn't make me come here! Why did I wish to go to what gave me the weird feeling? And why did my veins glow?" She hiccuped. "Nothing is making sense anymore!"  
  
The poor girl has been through many things. She lost her beloved father, her mother was becoming too busy for her, and she's been having weird dreams and blue lights in her vision. Her veins have been glowing, and whenever she would open her eyes, the room she was in had become a mess, making her either hurry to clean it up or flee the scene. This was all becoming too much for her.  
  
Talli fell to her knees, beginning to bawl. "I'm just scared...I'm just so scared! I wanna go home!"  
  
The child immediately was aware of a gloved hand gently brushing her forehead, pulling away strands of hair from her face. She looked up to see a man suddenly there, sniper rifle in his other hand as he gazed at her with a sympathetic expression.  
  
"Are you alright, chica?" The man questioned.  
  
"N-No..." She hiccuped. "I'm lost and...and I'm scared..."  
  
"Well, if I am not bothering you, may I help you back?" The man laughed a bit. "I need a yes or no answer immediately, because I'm-"  
  
"Yes!" Talli spoke up. "I really want to get back home!"  
  
The man took Talli's small hand into his own. "Okay, then. Stay close to me. There could be bad people here. So if we see bad people, I need you to be brave, okay?"  
  
"I-I'm always brave!" Talli retorted.  
  
The man chuckled at that. "Of course you are. I can tell you're a brave kid."  
  
Both of them began going along, navigating the area. The entire time, Talli kept a firm grip on not only his hand, but his cloak. She found that it was extremely similar, almost identical to her father's. Just covering herself with the part that trailed behind the man gave herself a little more comfort.  
  
After they pressed on a bit more, Talli noticed the man almost seemed to glow blue. "Huh...?"  
  
"Hm? What is-?" The man looked at his hand. "Oh, Great Viajero. Not so soon..." He clenched his fist, furrowing his brow. "What should I do...?"  
  
"Talli?" The little girl perked up at faint calling. "TALLIIIIIIII!"  
  
"M-Mommy?" She murmured to only herself.  
  
The man exhaled, as if holding in a breath. "Well, that makes everything better." He seemed to glow brighter as he knelt down. "Look, chica? You were really brave."  
  
"Talli!"  
  
He laughed. "Talli...I like that name." Out of his pocket, he withdrew a bullet Talli recognized as a sniper rifle's. "Can I trust you with a very important task?"  
  
She nodded, smiling. "Uh-huh!"  
  
"If you find somebody named Carla, who has glowing eyes like you do..." Gingerly, he pressed the bullet into her small hands. "Give her this. And tell her that I'm okay." He closed her fist around it, then smiled at Talli. "Can you do that?"  
  
"Yea. Yea, I can!"  
  
"Thank you."  
  
With that, the man was entirely consumed by the blue glow. The silhouette of the glow exploded into blue dust, leaving Talli alone and with the sudden urge to sneeze. No trace of the man ever being there was left, except for the sniper bullet.  
  
There was a sudden whoosh, and Talli looked up to see Carla fly down on her wings. "Lucy-1!" She called. "This is her, isn't it?"  
  
True to her words, Lucy came barreling forward. "Talli!"  
  
"Mommy!" Talli ran at Lucy in return, and was swept up into a tight hug. "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!" She chanted, starting to cry.  
  
Lucy, however, was outright sobbing. "You do NOT! EVER! DO THAT!" She bawled as Carla watched awkwardly. "I was SO worried! You could have gotten hurt, or MUCH worse!"  
  
"I know, I know! And I won't ever do it again!"  
  
Lucy stroked Talli's cheek. "You promise, muffin?"  
  
"I really, really promise!"  
  
As they hugged it out, Carla noticed Talli's clutched fist. "What's that right there, little one?"  
  
"Huh?" Talli looked at Carla. After a moment, she slipped out of the hug to walk forward. "Your eyes glow like mine! Are you Carla?"  
  
"What? I...I am."  
  
"Then here!" Talli reached out her hand to extend the bullet. "Somebody helped me find you, but he disappeared! He wanted you to have this, and for me to tell you he was okay!"  
  
Carla slowly took it. She rolled it between two fingers. The initials "AB" engraved on the side made her smile.  
  
"I'm happy he is." She put it away, a guilt lifted from her heart.  
  
"Who are you talking about?" Lucy asked.  
  
"My uncle."  
  
When they exited the time break, Lucy still stared with a confused gaze at Carla. She watched the chrono angel conduct a stream of blue dust with two fingers. Magically, the time break seemed to close, as if a needle was being threaded through the tear.  
  
"You have an uncle?" The Hunter Vanguard questioned.  
  
Carla nodded. "From your world. Sniper. He's actually a Hunter. I would probably be either a Hunter or a Warlock, if I was one."  
  
Talli giggled. "Warlock!"  
  
Lucy sighed. "She, uh...prefers Warlocks." She nudged the little one. "Little traitor..."


	12. The Lion and the Crow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter:
> 
> -Lucy-1  
> -Keith  
> -Kosmo  
> -Pulled Pork  
> -Petra Venj  
> -Uldren Sov
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> Keith meets a wandering Ghost looking for their Guardian, and agrees to help them.

"Aw, heading out, Keith?"

Keith looked over his shoulder. There, the Hunter Vanguard watched him, nearly buried in the stacks of files on her desk. "Oh. Hello, Hunter Vanguard."

"Just call me Lucy." Lucy-1 waved a hand dismissively. "I hate the formality. And hello to you, too."

The Black Paladin looked away. "And yea, I'm going out. I wanted to explore the planets to get used to them, seeing that we'll probably be here a while."

Lucy tapped the pen on her head, still smiling. "We're thinking of calling it the Alliance-Umbra War. Even though there hasn't really been any casualties, so there really is no war right now. Anyways, if you're heading out, I need you to do something for me."

Keith almost sighed on the outside, but kept it in. "What is it?"

The woman tossed Keith a file, which he barely caught. "Burn this whenever you feel like it. Read it like a magazine, I don't give a crap. I just don't want it."

"Um...Why?"

"Cause the sucker in it was the guy that killed my husband."

Now sitting on one of the cliffs on the unfamiliar version of Earth, Keith peered through binoculars. Not too far behind him sat the Black Lion, and right next to him, his faithful dog Kosmo.

Keith lowered them, scowling underneath the glass. While he went outside of the City to learn more about the terrain he'll be facing for a while now, he couldn't help but let his mind wander to other things, such as the situation of a lack of a home to go back to.

When Carla summoned everyone, most people were lucky. For example, the world of Lore was easily accessible by its people, having travelled outside it and to other dimensions before. However, for the Paladins of Voltron and the few comrades they brought with them, home has yet to be found.

Everyone had bountiful amounts of data to track down unknown worlds, but they have yet to find their version of Earth. It was as if it never existed, leaving the Paladins marooned in a world they have yet to accept as their own.

Keith didn't mind. He just can't help but worry for Hunk, who's most definitely thinking about his parents. And also Pidge, especially after only having been reunited with her family for such a short time. And occasionally, he even worried about Lance, who had his large and extensive amounts of relatives to occupy his mind.

As for him? He's always been alone. There was Shiro, but he was here, and so were Krolia and Kosmo. There wasn't really anybody to worry about back in the home that seemed so far away now.

He continued looking through the binoculars, brushing away his hair. Scowling, he found a lack of things to look at in the Cosmodome, and was planning to leave when he finally noticed something of interest: a little moving purple dot.

Blue light streamed from it, passing over the rocky ground. As Keith zoomed in, he could identify it as a Ghost, with a flower-like design as the base of its purple shell. However, no Guardian was in sight, baffling him. What was a Ghost doing all alone, with the threat of danger?

Speaking of danger, something else caught his attention, and he directed the binoculars towards it. A quick focus revealed what looked to be a Fallen Vandal. They were hefting up a shock rifle, and aiming their sights exactly where the Ghost was.

"Oh, no," was all Keith muttered before his instincts took over. With one hand, he signaled Kosmo forward with two fingers. The other hand swapped out the binoculars for his black bayard, which shifted right into a blade.

The Ghost heard Kosmo before they saw him, and turned, shell rotating. With a mighty leap, the wolf jumped to snag the Ghost from the air just in time to yank it away from the shot from a shock rifle that merely whistled through his fur. Kosmo skidded back onto the dusty ground, Ghost in mouth.

That was Keith's cue. He took a running start from the cliff before leaping down. He put all of his strength into his arms, muscles tensed, as he drove his knife straight into the Fallen's skull. A shriek ripped out and echoed across the desolate land before  it hit the ground, taking Keith with it.

With a groan, the Paladin was able to pull himself out from the body. He kicked aside the head to worm his way out. Slowly, he got back on his feet, and made sure to reacquire his knife from its resting place in the head, too.

"That was..." He looked to see the Ghost watching him, Kosmo right next to it. His blue eye stared at him, processing his entire form. "That was amazing! Incredible! Sure, I got drenched in saliva, but it was worth it to see that!"

At that, Keith tried to rub away the spit on the shell. "Sorry. Are you alright?"

"Never better!" He replied in a chipper tone.

"Are you one of those...um...Ghosts?"

He imitated a nod. "Yep! I'm still searching for my Guardian!"

"Are they...lost?"

"No no no, not lost! Dead!"

Keith looked alarmed at that. "What?! Dead?! Did somebody steal their body?"

"What? No! Who would do that? No! We Ghosts find dead bodies, and revive them as our personal Guardian! I'm looking for a very specific one!"

The Paladin grimaced a bit. "So, that's how it works...? Sorry. I'm new to this...Guardian concept."

"Then you must have came in with all the other people now making the Alliance!" The Ghost's shells clicked and whirred. "I've been hearing all about it! You all are very unfamiliar with so many concepts! Like terraformed planets, and asteroid belts with civilizations in them!" He turned to face away. "Well, thanks for the rescue, but I need to continue looking for my Guardian. Goodbye!"

"Wait." He stopped, and looked back at Keith. "I'm sorry, but I don't like the idea of something as small as you traveling an entire solar system of dangers."

"Well, then...You can come with me!" The small orb practically cheered.

"Well..." Keith seemed to think before looking at Kosmo. "What do you think?" He barked once. "I feel like that's a yes."

"You can understand wolf? Woooow!"

Keith laughed a little. "Well...No, I can't. It's more having been with him for long enough to start to understand him. That doesn't mean I can hold full conversations with him."

The small Ghost was marveled by the Black Lion. Not only did it tower over them, making them feel like ants in comparison, it also permanently implanted in the Ghost's data due to the design being entirely unique. All in all, it was nothing he has ever seen before.

Just inside, Keith sat down at the controls, taking off his helmet and letting his mullet drop out. "Is it normal for Ghosts to have names? I mean, the Hunter Vanguard has Echo."

"If you're asking for my name, it's Pulled Pork!"

Keith paused at that. "Wait. Did I hear that right?" He looked back at the Ghost. "Pulled Pork?"

"Yes! It was given to me by others, so it kind of became my name! Everybody calls me that, nowadays!"

"Huh..." Keith turned back to the controls, gripping them as the Lion came online. "Quite a creative name. My name's Keith, and the wolf is Kosmo."

Soon, the Lion rocked a bit, signaling it was taking off. Keith pulled on the controls, and it rocketed into the air. It quickly began to build up speed, though nobody in the cockpit was affected. It wasn't long before it broke atmosphere and made its way into the nebula of space.

Keith took the time to release the controls, letting the Lion drift a bit as he looked to Pulled Pork. "So, you've been all around the solar system?"

"All the planets! The moon, Venus, Mars...Only place I haven't checked is the asteroid belt civilization I mentioned."

The Paladin raised an eyebrow, having a quizzical expression. "Where's that exactly?"

"It's called the Reef. It's between Mars and Jupiter." Pulled Pork flew towards the window, looking in a direction. "Over there."

"The Reef, huh? You sure we'll be welcome there?"

"Mm...Can't say they're too keen about guests. But they've been going under a few changes these past few years. I don't think they'll think too much of us."

Keith pressed forward the controls. "You say that now, but I don't think a giant flying Lion will go unnoticed."

The entire Reef was...desolate, to be honest. While he knew signs of civilization were there, instead of it entirely being just asteroids, there were instead abandoned and hollow pieces of ships either drifting aimlessly or stuck in place, left to jut up into space.

Whenever Keith noticed them, a large pit in his stomach formed and would not easily go away. It twisted up his chest, and threatened to make him vomit. He tried not to think too hard about the ships, but judging by the fact they seemed less like battleships and more like ones of a colony...

Pulled Pork noticed his slightly nervous expression. "Are you alright, Keith?"

"Huh? Yea. I'm...just fine." Keith gripped the controls more tightly, watching the muscles tense under his armor. "Well...How old are these ships?"

"Hm? Oh! No need to worry! They've been abandoned for centuries! There's no new additions, so we're good!"

"What were they used for?"

"Well, you see, there was this big event called the Collapse. A lot of people boarded colony ships to escape the Collapse. However, they failed to get to safety, and instead were caught right in between the light and darkness. They all were destroyed, and the people instead became the first Awoken."

Keith furrowed his brow. "So...They're some sort of hybrid of light and darkness? Interesting..." He leaned back a bit. "Where are we landing?"

"Um..." Pulled Pork rotated, viewing the area. "How about over there? It looks like a landing area."

"Doesn't look full, either." The Paladin nodded before lowering the controls, the Black Lion following the movement.

The Black Lion easily landed in the space given. As soon as they touched down, Keith noticed Pulled Pork was anxious to get out, probably eager to find his Guardian. So, Keith opened the door, and let the Ghost rocket out, only pausing in retrieving his helmet to follow. Kosmo just decided to stay inside, curling up to have a nice little nap.

The Reef seemed even more empty than Keith thought. As they walked along, he imagined he'll see other people, due to Pulled Pork calling the place a civilization. Instead, they were completely alone as they walked forward.

Almost completely alone. Just as the Black Lion was about to leave his sights, a voice came up. "Hey. Who are you?" He looked up in time to see a person with the figure of a female drop down from a pile of rubble.

Keith could recognize her violet hair shade and eyepatch. "Petra Venj." He stuck a hand out. "Name's Keith. I'm from the Alliance."

Petra took it and returned the handshake. "I've been hearing about that. You know about me?"

"You're the one trying to lead the Reef right now. Couldn't really stay in the dark."

Petra sighed at that. "I've been doing my best. Anyways, what do you need?"

Keith nudged the Ghost next to him a bit. "This Ghost here has been looking for their Guardian for a while now. They haven't looked here, yet."

The Queen's Wrath seemed to understand, but looked grim. "Yea. Alright, got it. Just be careful. Ever since there was a prison breakout, there's been a lot of shifty and dangerous people around the Reef, especially in a place called the Tangled Shore."

"I'll keep my eye open, there. Come on, little guy." Keith gestured Pulled Pork to follow him.

Exploring soon became a bit of a hard time. Petra was wise to warn them both of the dangers of the Reef. More than once, Keith found himself attacked by mutated Fallen Pulled Pork identified as Scorn. He was only able to avoid them by said Ghost warning him just before any gun opened fire, giving him ample time to dive into hiding.

Near the time that Keith slated for himself to return home, their trail had run cold. No dead body Pulled Pork identified as his Guardian had been found. At this point, Keith was getting a bit tired from constantly ducking and weaving due to Scorn.

Keith looked up at the source of the light illuminating the shore. "And what's that?"

"The entrance to the Dreaming City," Pulled Pork answered. "Are you thinking that my Guardian could be in there?"

"We're not finding anything on the shore here." Keith kickstarted his rocket boots, and began to fly towards the portal. "But it is your call."

"...Yea." Pulled Pork zipped after him excitedly. "Let's go, Keith!"

He found himself not at the shore when he got to the other side, but a clean and pristine environment of lush greens and a beautiful view. In the distance laid what seemed to be a pure white city. It looked completely different from the Tangled Shore that they were just at.

Pulled Pork flew ahead as soon as Keith's feet touched the ground. "Come on! I can feel it!"

Keith rushed after the small Ghost. "Hey! Wait!"

It wasn't long before Pulled Pork suddenly diverged on the path they were taking. He took a sharp left, and the blue light began to stream from his eye again, meaning he had found something.

Keith looked around. "Is...Is this it?"

"It has to be..." Pulled Pork noticed something. "Yes!" Without another word, he darted forward, and the Paladin scurried to keep up.

The place they entered seemed to be a small gazebo of sorts. In the center of it was a small, circular platform. A white blanket covered it, and Keith could make out the shape of a human body under it.

"This looks...recent," Keith stated. "Are you sure this is it?"

"Definite."

Pulled Pork suddenly expanded his shell, letting it split into numerous pieces. As Keith watched, a blue glow cast out from the Ghost. The shell pieces spun, rotating all around the core of Pulled Pork, until finally, a burst of blue shot out.

Keith noticed the body under the blanket shift. Wisely, he took a few steps back, and watched as the body jerked out of their slumber of death.

He did not look to be human. His skin was blue, and seemed to almost glow with light pulsing ever so faintly. Lighter blue markings were evident on his face, and his amber eyes glowed. He wore clothes in black, which he now stared at with wide eyes, breathing quickly.

After a bit, he became aware of another presence, and he turned to stare at Keith. For a moment, he was silent, before he spoke up in a clear and almost alluring voice. "Who are you? What is this place?"

Keith struggled to regain his bearings. He could feel his face turn hot, but he managed to keep his voice stable enough to pass. "My name is Keith. And I don't even know myself. I just followed this guy here." He made a gesture towards Pulled Pork.

At that invitation, the Ghost flew forward. "Hello! I'm your Ghost, Pulled Pork!"

"Ghost?"

"Yep! Welcome to the Guardians!"

He was confused on that, too. "...Guardians?"

Keith cleared his throat, looking over his shoulder. "We shouldn't really stay here for long. Since this was recent, it wouldn't be too out of the question for somebody to come. By then, we should be gone."

"Oh! Oh, right! That makes sense!" Pulled Pork began nudging the man up, who moved aside the white cloth that had been placed over him. "Come on! Come on!"

With some help from Keith, the man got off the platform he had just been laying on, batting the Ghost away slightly. "I'm going. No need to do that."

Keith had little trouble flying back to the Tangled Shore, though it was a long flight, and the newly risen Guardian had to cling onto him, causing a bit of an awkward piggyback until they were back in the Tangled Shore. From there, it wasn't long before they were back at the Black Lion.

Inside, the Awoken looked around with obvious wonder. "Are most ships like this?"

"No. This is one of the few actually modeled like this." Keith sat in the pilot's seat, already taking off his helmet.

"...You have nice hair," the Awoken randomly commented, making Keith turn as red as his previous Lion suddenly. 

Pulled Pork joined in. "You guys have similar hairstyles! I didn't notice that!"

Keith sighed as Kosmo sniffed the Awoken, who reached a hand out for the wolf to investigate. "Right...I can see that..." He cleared his throat. "Anyways, what's your name?"

"Name? I..."

Pulled Pork went over to Keith guiding the controls for the Lion to take off. "When Guardians are initially revived, they don't remember anything about themselves. That includes a name."

"Wait." Keith looked back. "You don't have a name?"

"Well...I don't remember one."

"Odd...I feel like I've seen you before." Keith rubbed his head. "Somewhere, somehow...But that would be weird, because really, the only Awoken I know is Commander Zavala."

The Awoken noticed a file sticking out of a compartment and drew it out. "Is it okay if I read this?"

Keith looked, then waved a hand. "Yea. Sure. I was going to get rid of it, anyways."

He opened it up. "What is this?"

"Apparently, it's a criminal wanted on multiple offenses. Prison breakout, associating with the enemy, first-degree murder...His name was Uldren Sov...Prince of the Reef..." The pieces slowly came together in Keith's mind, and it hit him like a truck. "Died only a few months ago..."

Both the Awoken and Keith looked at each other the same time. Their faces held the exact same expression of shock and vague worry. Pulled Pork didn't catch on as fast, but did eventually after looking in between the two.

"Wait...Don't tell me..."

"You revived Uldren Sov." Keith completed the sentence.

 

The Awoken, Uldren Sov, looked over the file again. "I did all of this? The murder of Cayde-6, the release of these...Scorned Barons...and betraying my own people?"

 

"The picture matches. It's where I've seen you before."

 

"...I'm a monster." Uldren slowly closed the file with shaking hands, having a look of absolute horror on his face.

Pulled Pork tried to recover the more positive emotions. "Awww, no sweat, Uldren! This could be your redemption road! And trust me, I bet both of us will be with you the entire way! Nobody will stop us!"

 

Keith sighed. "Perhaps a Tower of angry Guardians will?"

 

"...Well...um..." Pulled Pork clicked a few times, seeming to think. "Why don't we just hide him?"

 

The Black Paladin looked up. "Hide him? Excuse me?"

 

"Yea! Guardians wear helmets all the time! It isn't too out of the ordinary to wear one all the time! So, technically, he can wear a helmet all the time, and nobody will question it! And he can still act as a Guardian!"

 

Keith sighed. "Yes, but a problem still remains: his name. You know?"

 

Pulled Pork paused. "Oh. Oh, yea. That's right." He paused before saying in a chipper manner, "What about a fake name? Or an alias?"

 

"...That could work," Keith admitted.

 

Uldren sighed, and sat down. He looked as Kosmo curled up to his side, almost hugging him in a manner of sorts. "While I am grateful for the help, I can't help but wonder...why are you helping me? You just discovered I was a criminal."

 

"Well, Pulled Pork said you don't have memories of that. And I don't think I can bring myself to destroying him to kill you."

 

After a moment, the Ghost almost nervously spoke up. "Um...Thank you for not doing that?"

 

When the Black Lion landed back in the hangar, Keith was the only one to leave. He signaled Uldren to stay put, and thankfully, the Awoken understood him, continuing to sit and idly pet Kosmo. The Paladin tried to make it seem like he wasn't in a rush, but still quickened his pace.

 

When he came back, in his hands were engrams. With a little bit of effort, both of them were able to figure out how it works, at the expense of Uldren's new helmet smacking into Keith's face. With one bleeding nose, they were able to fully change Uldren's outfit. In less than a few minutes, he looked like a true Hunter.

 

Uldren spoke through the helmet. "Now that most of the identity issue is solved, a problem still lingers."

 

Keith frowned. "Right. The name. Have you thought of anything?"

 

The prince shook his head. "No. You?"

 

"No. Pulled Pork?"

 

"Um..." Pulled Pork tilted around in the air. "How about...Deimos? You know, the god of terror?"

 

Uldren sighed. "While I would prefer to not be labelled something that means terror, I feel we have little option at this point. There is no time to brood on possible names."

 

Keith opened the Black Lion's mouth to exit. "Well, then. Now that that's settled, let's go."

 

Uldren obeyed and followed closely behind Keith as both of them stepped out into the hangar. Looking around, he finds many things he is not able to identify, finding them all as unfamiliar and alien to him.

 

A cackling laughter brought him out of it. He whipped his head to look at Lucy on top of a pile of crates, laughing her lungs out. "So THAT'S why you needed those clothes!" She chuckled. "You had a fling!"

 

While Keith was completely red-faced, he did his best to keep a cool head. "Ul-Deimos...Meet Lucy-1. The Hunter Vanguard." Uldren waved a bit.

 

Lucy waved back. "Hello, Deimos! New Guardian, right? You look like a Hunter, and I've never seen you before! I'm gonna be your mission control, you got that? So don't get killed first day, kinderguardian!"

 

"Kinder...guardian?" Keith scratched his head.

 

"Slang for the new kids!" Still smiling, Lucy leaned back, putting her hands behind her head. "You might wanna get situated! Once you're fling's hooked you up with a gun or two, come talk to me and I'll see what I can give you for your first mission! We can always use another helping hand!"

 

"He's not my-" Keith started.

 

"Say it now, jinx it later!" Lucy hopped off the crates. "I'll be seeing you!" Still chuckling to herself, she started walking off, smiling.

 

"I will...have to be working for her?" Uldren questioned in a murmur.

 

Keith nodded. "Something tells me she won't let us live it down."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was actually the chapter in Season 1 I was most looking forward to


	13. O Captain, My Captain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter:
> 
> -Allura  
> -Mithrax  
> -Artix  
> -Axl/Gefangene  
> -Lucy-1  
> -Hunk  
> -Pidge
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> Allura may stick out and almost feel alone, but a visit out of the Tower remedies that.

Normally, dinner would be a fifteen-minute thing. The life of a Guardian meant speed was everything, and food just had to be edible. It wasn't like Guardians could die from food poisoning. The Light in a Guardian's body did work as an immune system too, and easily prevented sickness. However, with the recent influx of non-Guardians, Zavala ordered that the food be of better quality. Pidge keeps joking it was because of Shiro getting food poisoning from lunch and proceeding to heave his stomach into the closest trash can.

 

Therefore, dinner has taken a more leisurely pace. Instead of it being a quick meal of mediocre food, it has evolved into a time of hanging out and chatting with others, on rare occasions even sharing food with each other. While a few people, like Keith and Uldren, hid away to avoid any prying eyes (Uldren better know Keith's done a lot for him for the price of everyone claiming "Deimos" was his boyfriend), others made it more public, causing practically a meeting of people conversing over food.

 

In the hangar, Artix was dusting his hands, which were covered in barbecue sauce. A tin full of rib bones was right next to him as he sat in a circle of Hunk, Pidge, Axl, and Lucy, along with his faithful dog. "A true adventurer eats the meatiest of foods to keep their strength up!" Pulling out a bone, he offered it to the armored Pomeranian right next to him.

 

As Daimyo began gnawing on the bone, Axl sighed, holding two cans. "The worst part about having a split personality is that they have different tastes than you..." He tried to open one tin, but his arm immediately gained Gefangene's coloring and shot away. "Oh, come on! I want my damn mint mochi!"

 

"Isn't food bad for a Reploid body?" Hunk asked while nibbling on a cookie partially wrapped in paper.

 

Axl's eyes turned red, along with his helmet turning to Gefangene's color. "It is. That's why I'm preventing him from eating it. Somebody take it, please. You may have the contents, if you wish."

 

"Can do!" Lucy snagged the tin easily from Axl, and pulled out three green mochis from it, playing with them in one hand. "What exactly are these, again?"

 

Pidge crunched on a protein bar. "They're called mochi ice cream. They're little balls of ice cream covered in a rice layer. The ice cream is the practical flavor, while the rice is just colored."

 

With two of the three already in her mouth, Lucy commented past a full mouth, "Wow, these are really good!"

 

"H-Hunter Vanguard!" Axl whined. "Those were mine!"

 

"You offered them up." Lucy smirked, and popped the last one in her mouth.

"Well, don't listen to Gefangene! He's just a stuck-up that doesn't like sweets!"

Pidge rolled her eyes. "If you guys differ so much, just put Gefangene in a different body altogether."

Axl paused at that. After a second, he shook his head. "Nope. Can't do. I've gotten so used to his voice, it'll just be empty up in my head without him! I'll miss him too much." He looked at the other tin and opened it before pulling out an energy bar and crunching on it. "But come on, man...Let me have my days!"

"Why don't you guys just agree on spliting up meals?" Hunk suggested. "Axl can have the weekends, Wednesday, and Monday, and Gefangene can have the other days."

"Hm..." Axl paused, then frowned. "He doesn't like it."

"Excuse me?" All turned their heads. There, Princess Allura stood, holding a sealed plastic container of what looked like green slop. "Can I eat here?"

Artix looked weirded out. "Uh...What's in the container? Slime?"

"Oh, no! It's food goo!" Allura opened the tin, and scooped some up with a spoon before holding it out. "Care for some, Artix Von Krieger?"

As the spoon moved forward, Artix's entire body moved back. His eyes stared at the spoon inches away from his face as if it was pink. If it was pink, it was deadly to him. "Um...pass."

Axl immediately stood up. "Hey, uh...Gefangene wants to go!" He sprinted off without any other words.

"Yeah, I mean..." Lucy backed away. "I'm usually a reaaaally busy person...I can already here the paperwork calling to me and telling me to do it!" 

"But...You've said yourself you never do your papers."

"Oh, look at the time! Papers o'clock! Later!" Lucy ran off, cloak flapping behind her.

Allura looked back to see Artix picking up Daimyo, who sniffed the goo and began to lick it. "Well, as a paladin, I must go to sharpen my blades!" Daimyo visibly recoiled, obviously not liking it. "And Daimyo seems to have eaten something bad! I must go now, Princess!" Artix bolted off. "Farewell!"

"Well...um..." Allura looked at Pidge and Hunk. "Would you care for some?"

"Sorry, but pass." Pidge made her mouth into a grimace. "It's now covered in dog spit."

"I'm already full!" Hunk claimed.

Allura frowned. "Oh. Alright."

As both of them stood up and left, only Allura was left at the spot. With a small sigh, she sat down, crossing her legs. She began to scoop up the goo and eat it with a dismal expression.

"Hey, uh, scuse me?" Allura looked to see Lucy back. "Hate to interrupt your...meal, but we have a Fallen problem all the way up on Titan. Zavala told me it was something about a methane reactor. Could you maybe check it out?"

Allura sighed, closing the container. "I can. Thank you for the assignment."

"No problem." Lucy waved a bit before turning on her heel and heading back the way she came.

Allura took little time in getting ready. All she really had to do was pull on her Pink Paladin armor, which was put into a chest laying in the faithful Blue Lion. Pulling it out, she quickly put it on.

As she did, it occurred to her that she hasn't worn it in a long time. Dust was visible on the armor, especially prominent on the black bodysuit part. She tried to dust it off, but eventually gave up and decided it'll come off on its own.

Heading to Titan was easy. What was hard was, as soon as she landed, dodging the sudden Fallen attacks. They must have learned of the Alliance discovering the methane reactor. That, or they really wanted to protect it with their lives, no matter if they knew or not. Regardless, she took out her blue bayard and prepared for a fight.

First came the problem of the door in front of her. Guarded by Dregs now in alert, a sneaky approach was out of the question. Unclipping an explosive from her belt, she lobbed it with extreme strength. She watched it sail, beeping, before it exploded right as it hit the door. The result was a clear passageway into the place to claim the methane reactor.

She could see Vandal snipers take aim at the busted down doorway to snipe their attackers. To respond, a whip shot around one and sent it crashing to the ground, stunning them long enough for Allura to rush in and slide into cover inside the building. She moved to wipe her helmet free from the flying dust, then peeked out to survey her surroundings. She could see that Fallen were everywhere, and surmised she was in for a fight.

Cloaked Marauders dropped from the ceiling as she watched, and they prepared to strike down at her when they are close enough. To respond, Allura took out another explosive and dropped it before moving cover. The Marauders see the explosive, and they were probably going to say some swear in their native language before being vaporized in the explosion. With little competition left, she made a break for the reactor room, and managed to make it without any other opposition.

When she ran forward into the reactor room, she noticed a peculiar sight. A Fallen with not only purple, but gold designs, was having a sword fight with a Hive Knight. The Knight was clearly winning, judging by the Fallen being hit right all and around.

The Fallen Captain was kicked right into a wall. Knowing it was losing, it fought like a cornered rat and, after getting up, charged at the Knight again, only to be stabbed in his ankle. It roared before tumbling down on the ground, making Allura flinch. 

The Knight approached the Fallen, and prepared to cut it down. Allura expected for the Fallen to get up again, but instead, it seemed to accept his fate, simply lying there and waiting for death.

Allura was faced with a choice there. She could let the Hive Knight kill the Fallen right then and there, and then kill the Hive herself to take the reactor without any more problems. However, she felt almost in the wrong for doing such a cowardly move. Perhaps the Fallen would even help her take down the Knight.

With her decision made, the Altean flicked her whip forward, and let it lash around the arm with the knife before yanking it back as hard as she could. The Knight bellowed with a snapping sound being heard. The Fallen opened one eye to see the Knight’s arm ripped off and now coiled in the whip.

As the Fallen seemed to stare at Allura, the Knight switched targets and charged at her. Allura nimbly dodged with a backflip, skidding back and looking around. Perhaps she should have thought this through, because she knew a gun-less bayard would only do so much to a Hive Knight.

"I should have brought a gun..." She murmured to herself.

The Fallen actually seemed to understand her situation. It used it strength to get up slowly, and grabbed one of its shock blades in a shaking hand. Before either the Knight or Allura could try and dodge, it chucked it at the Knight and hit it straight in the skull, effectively killing it. Allura watched it dissolve into ash right before her, stepping back slightly.

With that, the two remaining aliens looked at each other, staring each other down. The Fallen was crouching on the ground, seeming to be in a defensive position. Allura raises her bayard, expecting it to attack her.

Instead, it spoke to her in a growling voice. "Thank...you."

  
Allura's eyes widened. "You can...speak English?"

"Yes. Not good. Come for reactor?"

The Altean looked over at the spoken reactor. "That was my mission objective."

"Then keep."

Allura was about to question the Fallen, but decided against it, in case that would make it change its mind. Instead, she gave a nod. "I suggest you leave, then. Guardians will most likely come here once I have made the all-clear."

 

"Yes. I leave." With that, the mysterious Fallen teleported away, leaving the Altean alone.

 

She took a second to move, still standing in place. When she did move, it was to pull out a communicator to contact the Tower. "This is Allura. I have claimed the reactor."

 

Zavala's voice responded. "Excellent work, Allura. Was it difficult?"

 

"Not too much. However, something happened. There was a...peaceful Fallen. It could speak English, too."

 

"Like Variks? Hm...It appears they are learning. Though it could be used as a means of getting the advantage on us. Nonetheless, the reactor is ours. Return home, Allura. You've done well."

 

Allura only lingered a few moments more in the area. She seemed to look around for the strange Fallen who not only helped her, but was able to speak broken English. When she didn't find them, she followed Zavala's command and made her way back to the Tower.

 

As she landed her borrowed jumpship into the Tower, she found questions brewing in her mind. Would she ever meet that Fallen again? If so, would it be a peaceful meeting, or a dangerous one? Whatever it was, she did for sure have a feeling it wouldn't be their last meeting.

 

She made her way out of the now-parked jumpship, and looked at Lumine talking to Amanda. "Hello, King Lumine. Amanda."

 

"'Ey, Allura!" Amanda gave a two-fingered salute. "Heard from Zav you got a new four-armed friend or somethin'!"

 

"It was a unique event," Allura admitted. "I never have seen a Fallen do that before."

 

Amanda looked back down at her workbench. "An' you thought all of 'em were a buncha thieves and smugglers. Well, they are, but still."

 

Allura merely shrugged. "There are always the good apples in a tree."

 

Lumine merely dusted his hair out of his face. "I believe that is usually the case. Even for species that live on..." He trailed off, noticing a Frame run by. "Hm?"

 

It certainly seemed to be worried about something as it scurried along. "Oh dear, oh dear. I need someone. I need someone to speak to?"

 

The king of Valla caught it by the arm as it went by. "Calm down. What is it?"

 

"There is a Fallen in the central plaza of the Tower," the Frame explained. "He kept speaking he is searching for the 'Kell of World Life'. What does he mean, what does he mean?"

 

"I don't know," Allura replied, though she already had an idea. "Perhaps I can try to communicate. Make sure all guns are lowered."

 

"Be careful," Lumine warned.

 

Allura nodded in return. "I will."

 

It wasn't hard to find where the Fallen was exactly. All Allura had to do was follow the curious Guardians moving in one direction and whispering to others about the Fallen. They lined the walls, but didn't really fill up the middle, allowing her easy passage.

 

Besides that, it was even more simple to spot the Fallen in the plaza. Emerging into the dusk beginning to shine on the day, she could easily spot the familiar scheme of gold and purple speaking to a very worried-looking Guardian.

 

"So it is the Fallen from before..." Allura murmured to herself just before she began to descend down the steps. "Excuse me!"

 

The Fallen's head turned to look at her. Leaving the Guardian, who immediately scampered away, it went over to Allura. "You. I remember. At core. Where I fought. Almost died, then you arrived. Saved my life. I remember, and respect." The Fallen seemed to bow to her, Allura surprised at the formality. "I left House Dusk. I now align with House Light. Your City. I am Mithrax."

 

"Um...H-Hello, Mithrax. I am Princess Allura of the Alteans. I pilot the Blue Lion of Voltron."

 

Mithrax straightened up. "Princess. I respect such title. It is comparable to Kell."

 

Before Allura replied, she heard numerous footsteps. Looking behind her, she could see the Vanguard heading down the stairs, followed by a few others. All of them had weapons ready, as if expecting an attack from Mithrax.

 

Ikora gravitated over to Allura's side, and put a hand on her arm while looking at her with obvious concern. "Allura, are you unharmed?"

 

"I hope so." The Warlock Vanguard shot another glare at Mithrax. "Fallen are cunning. Savage."

 

Mithrax looked away. "You think me cunning. You will know I am not."

 

"Is this the Fallen that you saved?" Zavala questioned.

 

"I recognize him," Allura replied. "It is him."

 

Lucy sighed. "Why is he even here? You would expect him to crawl back into his little hidey hole. Aren't you Fallen scared of us Guardians?"

 

"No. Not scared. We were like you. Before Whirlwind."

 

At that, the Hunter Vanguard raised an eyebrow. "Whirlwind...What is the Whirlwind?"

 

Mithrax lowered his head, obviously frowning under his helmet. "Our fall. We were not what you see us. We were blessed by the Great Machine."

 

Allura looked up at the Traveler, hanging over the Last City as always. "Do you mean...?"

 

Mithrax looked up, too. "We were among those. Those who were powered by the Light."

 

"And then this...Whirlwind happened?" Ikora clarified. "What was it?"

 

"The Great Machine abandoned us. When we needed it most. We went in pursuit of Great Machine. We kept pursuing it, until we found it here. On Earth. I opted for speaking. Speaking for negotiating with you. But all Eliksni. All wanted it back for themselves. Desperation and Dreg strength was used constantly. You endured. We didn't. We were doomed. Doomed to fall forever."

 

Allura looked genuinely heartbroken at that. "How sad..."

 

The Fallen continued, now looking back at everyone else. "All hope was not yet gone. House Rain, one ancient House, spoke a prophecy. The prophecy of Kell of Kells. Kell of Kells will restore glory and bring all Houses under one banner. The Whirlwind took many things. But it took not our hope for Kell of Kells. Time will tell if Kell of Kells will be found." Mithrax looked over at Allura. "You have the same radiance as Kell of Kells. The Great Machine smiles upon you, princess."

 

The Red Paladin Lance leaned to whisper to Zavala. "I don't like them comparing her to their prophesized guy. That NEVER ends well."

 

The Commander Vanguard whispered back. "This 'Mithrax' may see her as someone similar. In any case, we will keep him under surveillance." He raised his voice to speak to Mithrax. "Tell me, Mithrax. Do you still serve your Fallen House?"

 

"Chose to abandon House Dusk," Mithrax answered. "I am no thief. I am no killer. I am a believer. A believer of hope."

 

Lance slowly nodded. "Uh-huh...Cool. Just be on your way, and we'll be cool, then!"

 

"No. I stay. I fight for you. My loyalties belong to you."

 

"Why?" Lumine questioned. "You just said the Fallen wanted to keep the Traveler to themselves."

 

"The Great Machine is better for you, than for Eliksni," Mithrax answered. "They do not see the truth of negotiation. When time is right, I will be Kell of own House. My House will ally with your City."

 

Allura looked at everyone gathered. They were either murmuring to themselves or glaring at Mithrax, as if to confirm his loyalties. It was obvious everyone except her did not trust Mithrax in the slightest. Therefore, it was her that had to take action.

 

Smiling, she stuck out one hand to Mithrax. "Then welcome to the Alliance!"

 

Everybody stared slack-jawed at the princess. "WHAT?!"

 

"It is an honor," Mithrax replied, shaking Allura's hand with one of his own.

 

Everybody had varying reactions. While most were shock, others were of anger or disgust. Keith just pretty much looked indifferent, only scowling with his arms crossed. While most people were voicing their disapproval, a quick glare from Allura shut them up nicely.

 

Mithrax did not immediately make himself at home. Instead, he hung out in a secluded corner of the Tower, where nobody attempted to bother him. There, he could stare at the Traveler and the City below it with no disturbance.

 

Allura did not avidly seek him out. Instead, she stumbled upon the shaded corner he was in while looking for a place to have her unfinished lunch. In fact, she had no idea he was even there at all, and her heart nearly stopped when she saw him suddenly standing there.

 

"Oh!" He looked at her. "I didn't know you were here. Sorry to disturb you!"

 

"No. It is alright. You can join me."

 

"Really? Okay." Allura sat down on the ground, cross-legged. Her arrangement placed her right next to Mithrax, in the beginning of the shade the corner gave them. Staring through the railing around the Tower, she opened her food container. "While I'm here, I am curious about Fallen...Houses."

 

"You know not of Houses?"

 

"No. I don't mean to bother you, but...I just didn't know of any sort of housing in the Fallen?"

 

"Houses are factions. Different Houses, different Eliksni. Stationed in different places. Reef, Mars, Venus. Positioned all over the Solar System."

 

Allura seemed eager to learn more. "What houses are there of the...Eliksni?"

Mithrax smiled, and crouched down. "I am delighted you are interested. I can tell you."

 

"I would love to hear it!"


	14. Greenguard Teachings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter:
> 
> -Artix  
> -Daimyo  
> -Jadir  
> -Theodore  
> -Eagle-12  
> -Drakath Slugwrath
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> Artix becomes something that nobody ever expected from him: a teacher.

"On your left! No, your LEFT!"

"This IS my left!"

"That's your RIGHT, DIMWIT!"

"OUR DIRECTIONS ARE DIFFERING!"

A trio of Guardians launched themselves across a blockade. The Hunter clothed in a deep purple shot ahead, an Arc Staff in hand. The Titan gripped a flaming Hammer of Sol that matched his golden and white armor. The Warlock tagged in last, wearing a forest green, but crackling with the power of a Nova Bomb.

The three were currently in a training arena. All around them were deployed holographic Vex, thanks to some of Hunk's handy engineering. While they weren't on par with real Vex, they still posed a challenge to those who went ahead of their fireteam to try and solo the training run. Unfortunately for them, each of them were repeatedly doing that and getting themselves killed.

As they spectacularly failed, they were being watched. Sitting on a crate on a platform hanging over the enclosed area was Artix von Krieger, axe shouldered and Daimyo sitting right in his lap. Petting the armored dog, he continued to watch the three with not disappointment, but vague concern for their actions.

Artix flinched for the dozenth time when the Titan and Warlock ended up crashing into each other. The result was their Supers going off and killing them both, causing the Hunter to stop and look at the Ghosts now hovering in midair for a revive.

He couldn't let it go on like this. He sighed, and gently picked up his Pomeranian and set him on the ground. He even gave the ball of yellow fluff a loving few strokes on the head, solidified by a few pats at the end. As Daimyo watched, the paladin walked to the edge and dropped right down into the arena.

Blinding Light of Destiny ready, Artix swung it at the first Vex that approached him, and let it explode into holographic bits of data. That was enough for the system to log him as an opponent, and the other Vex turned to fire at him as well.

The brunette man wasted no time in dashing to the Hunter, who was in the midst of reviving their friends. With a spinning kick, he effortlessly wiped out a Vex right behind them, causing them to look and probably stare with wide eyes under their helmet.

Artix landed in a perfect battle-ready position. "Let's see if you follow orders. Revive your comrades, and get to immediate cover."

The voice that stammered out was female. "Y-Yes, sir!" Quickening their pace, they returned to reviving the rest of their fireteam.

When all of them were revived, instead of going into cover, they sat there and watched Artix with stunned expressions under their helms. They followed his fluid movements with their gazes, in awe at his agility despite being in a full suit of armor. It was like a group of children had been presented with some form of candy or toy, and now they couldn't take their eyes off of it.

Artix jumped off of a small, rocky ledge. Spinning in midair, he brought his golden axe down onto the Vex hologram. He landed right behind it, cape fanning out behind him. As for the hologram, it split in half just before it disintegrated. With that, he got up, shouldering his axe once more.

The trio of Guardians seemed lost for words. Slowly, they came up to the unfamiliar man who grinned at them like they were old friends. They looked at each other, none of them knowing what to say and expecting their friends to do something.

Soon, it was the Titan that acted first, taking off their helmet to reveal a dark-skinned man with light but dusty blonde hair. "H...Hi..." He stammered.

"Hello!" All three looked a bit taken aback by his voice, and he noticed it. "Oh, don't worry, I get that reaction all the time! Most people expect my voice to be-" Artix mimicked a deep voice. "Down heeere!" He cleared his throat. "Artix von Krieger, legendary Paladin of Lore!"

"Legendary...?" The Titan mumbled, eyes getting wider every second.

"Yea! As in, really well-known, really popular, really powerful guy!"

The Titan was suddenly shoved out of the way by the Hunter, whose helmet had been removed to show a black and violet Exo with glowing lavender eyes and her throat lighting with the same color whenever she spoke. "Legendary, huh? I could tell! That was awesome! Period! Eagle-12, honored to meet you, sir!" She stuck a hand out to shake.

Before Artix could take it in his armored grip to deliver one of his energetic handshakes, Eagle-12 was pushed away herself by the Warlock. It was a man, the blue skin being a dead ringer it was an Awoken. His hair went into a black braid. "Please ignore her. She is irritating. I am Jadir, the brains of the fireteam." He soon had an enamored grin, too. "A pleasure to meet you-"

Jadir got socked right in the jaw, sending him back and letting the Titan take his place. "Ignore them. I'm the muscle, and what matters on the field. Name's Theodore, one of the best Titans there is!"

That got him hit on the head from behind. "We're all still kinderguardians, dimwit!" Eagle growled.

"Uh...kinderguardians?" Artix questioned. "Isn't that the term for Guardians new to the...Guardian thing? That explains your lack of ability to work together..."

"It's not my fault, sir!" Eagle claimed. "If I slowed down for these guys, I wouldn't get anything done!"

Jadir stared at Artix. "Legendary, huh? What have you done?"

"Oh, that's simple! I, alongside many adventurers, helped save the mystical continent of Lore from a powerful force of Chaos, its champion and the 13 Lords!" He gave another huge grin. "It was tough, and it took a few years, but we did it! Though that doesn't mean Lore isn't in danger anymore. We have to deal with several different threats all the time, like the forces of skeletal undead, and the occasional zombie apocalypse..."

The three kinderguardians stared at him with eyes filled with wonder. "Wow..." Theodore breathed. "You do all that?"

"Weekly! Lore's full of crazy stuff, so you're never bored, Theo!"

At that, the Titan's eyes widened. "Did you just...give me a nickname?"

"I am so jealous!" Eagle exclaimed.

Artix looked a bit confused at all three of them. "Well...If you want nicknames, then..." He pointed at Eagle, then at Jadir. "Twelve and Jadie!"

For a moment, none of them did anything, still staring right through the smiling paladin. Then, they screamed. Not a fearful scream, but one of those screams a fangirl has when she meets her idol. They hopped in place, looking at each other with extremely happy expressions.

Artix tried to calm then down, raising his hands up. "Um...They're just nicknames, you guys. I always give friends nicknames."

They all paused, and Eagle leaned her head to stare at him. "Wait. Hold on. Did you just call us your friends?"

"Well, I guess I did!" He gave another big grin. Surprisingly, his cheeks didn't even hurt at this point.

He looked down at three individual thuds. All three kinderguardians were lying on the ground. Artix looked up with a worried expression at their individual Ghosts, only for them to quickly reassure him that they were still alive, having just fainted out of pure happiness. He did help the Ghosts wake up the young Guardians before he left them to resume their training.

Except they didn't resume their training. Instead, he kept noticing out of the corner of his eye that they were following him, hiding around corners and peeking their heads out to watch his cape-covered back. Initially, he found it a bit odd, but he chalked it up to their childlike curiosity and began to ignore it. He added swinging around his axe expertly into his movements to satiate their interest.

As he sat in the hangar, which was now less of a hangar and more of a popular hangout for Alliance members, he noticed his good friend Warlic sitting nearby. He was holding his magic staff and staring questioningly at him, raised eyebrow and all.

"...What?" The paladin questioned.

The Blue Mage pointed behind Artix. "There's a small group of adults following you everywhere."

"Oh, I know they're there." He shrugged in return. "I'm just letting them do what they want. But I should probably get a medical team for them. They get lightheaded, and faint really easily."

Warlic sighed. "They most likely are enthralled in you as a hero. You're a person of interest to them, now."

"Um...Sure. That would explain it. But I would imagine Zavala or Shiro being their idols. Wouldn't you?"

"Artix, you are not only the most powerful paladin in Lore, I have a feeling you can easily connect to all the narrowheaded Guardians here. You're one of their kin, with your inability to take things seriously and failure to resist the common paladin trick of your shoes being untied."

Artix glanced at his armored, lace-less boots to make sure they were tied before continuing the conversation. "I noticed before I met them face-to-face that they can't really work together. They seem to agree on nothing except liking me."

Warlic merely shrugged. "It's one of those developing friendships situations. The longer they practice together, the more they become friends. Is that not how it works?"

The paladin seemed to think, scrunching up his entire face. Warlic seemed to immediately regret what he said. Ideas that Artix thought up of were never beneficial in the end, and were instead just plain stupid, almost suicidal sometimes.

Therefore, the Blue Mage flinched when his face brightened up. "I have an idea!"

"Please don't take them to Lore," Warlic almost begged.

"I'm going to take them in as my students AND bring them to Lore!"

"Oh dear dragons, have mercy on those three."

While Warlic was more on the negative side, the kinderguardians certainly were more positive. They tripped out from hiding and scurried over to Artix, hitting into each other on the way. They made it to his side, draping over the pile of crates he was sitting on to let their feet dangle as they supported themselves to meet Artix's eye level.

"Did you say STUDENTS?!" They all cheered.

"We're gonna learn from you?!" Eagle questioned.

The paladin nodded. "Yes. I know I won't be as good as any Guardian, but I was hoping to teach you-"

At once, the crate pile went toppling when all three launched themselves off, sending boxes and Artix to the ground in a messy pile. "WE'LL BE BACK!" They chimed as they landed on their feet to sprint over to the vaults, most likely to gather their weapons.

Warlic stood up and calmly walked over to the buried man. "Are you alright?"

"How to...work together..." Artix slowly pulled himself out of the pile. "Yea...Yea, I'm fine..."

The kinderguardians took no time in retrieving their weapons to head back. While Eagle had a sniper rifle and an extra hand cannon holstered on her belt, Theodore had equipped a sword on his back and a machine gun in his hands. Jadir only had a single combat bow, and nothing else. Artix assumed they were prepared, and had a feeling they were eager to go already.

Luckily for them, Lore had been one of the first worlds that was connected to the gates used to travel to other worlds. Even more lucky, the gate was not currently in use, leaving them free to use it. That being said, Artix noted how excited they were, something he learned when the trio ran right through the forming portal when he turned the knob to the correct setting. Sighing and shaking his head, he didn't waste any time in following them, making sure to pick up Daimyo in his arms for the sweet little dog to tag along.

The area they emerged was not any sort of civilization, but instead a forest. With a few lonely dirt paths and plenty of rabbits strewn about, the ground was covered with a thick layer of grass, and the trees and bushes clumped closely together to block the naked eye from looking forward and out of the forest. Artix set Daimyo down to romp around and sniff the area.

Theodore looked back, and noticed the small dog. "Is that your dog?"

"Indeed! His name is Daimyo, my loyal sidekick! He also is very friendly and fluffy."

"Awwwwwww!" Eagle picked him up, and he barked at her. "He's sooo cuuute!"

As the Exo began to cuddle and pet him, Jadir looked around, raising an eyebrow under his helmet. "Sir, where exactly are we?"

"Welcome to Greenguard Forest! Where I live! Granted, I was born in a village away from here, and raised by the paladins, but anyways. THIS..." He gestured around with wide arms. "Is where all heroes start!"

"It's pretty!" Theodore complimented.

"Thank you!" Artix cleared his throat. "Now, what I want to teach you all doesn't involve how to cast a spell or wield a weapon. No, I want to teach you that it doesn't matter who wins in the end. It matters if you get the job done, you have a little fun on the way, and help each other if things get rough."

Jadir chuckled. "Hear that, bozos? You may actually learn something from this."

Eagle was already setting down Daimyo, cracking her fists. "Why, I oughta…"

Immediately, the paladin put himself in between the three, who were already clamoring to tear each other's throats out. "Hey! Hey! No fighting! That is the last thing I brought you here for!" When they didn't listen to him, snapping insults at each other, Artix sighed. "Perhaps we should go back, and never do this again."

The reaction was instantaneous. They pulled away as if they had touched a hot stove, and moved to dust themselves off. Finally, they got into a bowing position, facing Artix. He watched them with a slightly irritated expression as he tapped his foot impatiently, hands on his hips.

"We're so sorry!"

"We won't do that again!"

"I apologize deeply for our actions!"

Artix found himself pinching the bridge of his nose, sighing. "Maybe I bit off more than I could chew, and that's saying something, compared to what I normally do." He looked over at Daimyo sticking his head into a bush, so only his little fuzzy butt and his wagging tail were seen. "Hey! Daimyo!" He whistled, and Daimyo looked to show that a large bone was in his mouth. Artix patted his knees. "C'mere! C'mere, boy!" Daimyo galloped over, bone dragging on the ground, and stopped at Artix's foot. "Good boy!" He knelt down and squished Daimyo's fluffy cheeks, rubbing them. "Good boooooy!"

Jadir looked away. "That is...too cute for me to handle," he muttered.

"Hm..." Artix seemed to get an idea, and picked up the bone. Standing up, he cocked it behind his shoulder. "Fetch!" He threw it, and Daimyo became a golden streak in the grass, tromping after it. As Daimyo did that, he turned to the kinderguardians. "Okay, look. You're going to have to work together for now."

"Huh? What are we doing?" Theodore asked.

"We're going to work together to catch Daimyo!"

"What?" Jadir questioned. "Why? How?"

"Just follow me!" Artix ran after Daimyo, who had disappeared into the bushes. After a moment of hesitation, the kinderguardians played follow the leader and tagged along close behind him.

Deeper into the forest, the Pomeranian now laid in the grass. Under his front paws was the bone, which he was gnawing on with vigor. With his tail wagging, he seemed to not notice Artix and the kinderguardians hiding in the bushes, watching him.

Artix raised a hand. "Okay. Theo, you chase him in the direction of Twelve. Twelve, you use your blinking abilities to catch him. If he gets away from you, that's where you come in, Jadie. Remember, if we don't catch him, it's important to learn to work together."

Jadir nodded. "Right."

"Ready when you are," Theodore agreed.

Jadir and Eagle crept away to take positions elsewhere. Artix stayed in place, watching Theodore creep forward to Daimyo from behind. Then, with one dive, he lunged at the dog.

Daimyo's ears perked up, and he immediately bolted, letting Theodore crash right into the dirt. Racing forward, the small dog became a streak of light gold, right to where Jadir and Eagle were hiding.

Meanwhile, the Awoken and Exo were both prepared to sweep up the dog into their arms. However, instead of working together, they kept trying to push the other away, determined to catch Daimyo for themselves. Not too long after, it delved into a full-on commotion, which made Daimyo stop and stare at the fight. The Pomeranian tilted his head in confusion, watching the yelling and punches thrown.

Daimyo noticed his owner now sitting cross-legged and holding his arms out. He padded over, and made himself at home in Artix's lap, where he received head pats and belly rubs.

Theodore, watching the fight as well, sarcastically clapped. "Congratufreakinglations, girls. You failed. Epicly."

Jadir looked up, a fist full of Eagle's shirt collar and the other hand ready to punch her. "How?"

"Well..." Artix looked down at the dog enjoying his petting. "We still caught Daimyo, but you guys started fighting..."

"She started it!" Jadir claimed.

"Oh, shut up!" Eagle replied.

Daimyo barked before either of them threw a punch. He was now sitting up, watching them intently. He began to bark again, and only stopped when Jadir let go of Eagle, letting her fall backwards onto the ground.

Artix laughed. "See? Even Daimyo doesn't like to see you fight." He then sighed. "Look, you guys...Why are you in the same fireteam if you can't work together? I don't understand."

"..." Jadir pointed at Theodore. "Because of him."

Artix looked. "Huh?"

The Titan sighed, sitting cross-legged in front of Artix. "Before these two got revived, I found their Ghosts." He gestured to Eagle's gold and white Ghost and Jadir's deep purple one. "Wandering. Looking for their Guardians. For these two. I didn't want to leave them. I protected both of them, until we found Jadir and Eagle-12. And let me tell you, they were nothing short of grateful. They followed me around, and I let then stay. That's how we made our fireteam."

"So...It was less out of cooperation, but more of...loyalty to you?" Artix guessed.

Theodore shrugged. "Guess so."

"Loyalty is a part of a team. I'll give you guys that. However, a bond has to exist between you and your allies for a truly functioning team. A bond of trust, and a never leave behind a man attitude. You know?"

"...Sort of." Eagle shrugged a shoulder. "But I see where you're going."

Artix stood up, Daimyo sitting in front of him. "I'm not a teacher. I'm not even that good at math and science. I punch things, not solve things. But I want to solve your problem. I just don't know how to do it. I'm practically winging it as I go. But what matters is is that I'm trying. And you guys need to try, too."

What Artix also saw him bad at was pep talks. Judging by the kinderguardians just deciding to stare at him, they were not that motivated by him.

Suddenly, Eagle chuckled. "Don't play some sappy words, sir. We get your point."

Jadir laughed, too. "We'll try to get along. We've been trying for almost a year, now."

"It's just our form of tough love, but we can see the act needs to be cleaned up," Theodore admitted. "But we will need a teacher to show us how to do it!"

The paladin stared at them with slightly wide eyes. Finally, he let himself join in on their rounds of laughter. "Then how about we go and see if we can work together on the real thing? The forest of Greenguard is filled with monsters perfect for training!"

As all four cheered, with Daimyo joining in by howling and yapping, a small speck of purple watched them. Nestled in a swath of green leaves, a winged eye blinked twice, staring at the scene with a surprising amount of concentration. It seemed to almost act like a surveillance camera.

It also functioned like one, too. Far away, out of their reach, sat a man. With a mighty sword by the side of his throne and gripped in one hand, he watched the scene unfold through purple glass levitating before him. His face covered by shadows, he was clad in metal armor. A large eye was in the enter of his chest plate, darting around constantly.

"So...The Champion brings forth children from worlds beyond my knowledge. I say it is time I introduce myself to them. Beginning with the portal they came from. I shall wait for now, and watch the events that unfold. But soon, all they know will fall to **Chaos."**


	15. Angel Witness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter:
> 
> -Lucy-1  
> -Zavala  
> -Ikora  
> -Krolia  
> -Robina the Hood  
> -Allura  
> -Takashi Shirogane  
> -Mega Man X  
> -Lucina  
> -Lumine  
> -Hinoka  
> -Xander  
> -Eirika  
> -Madelyn  
> -Carla  
> -Rowan
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> Reality hits the Alliance. Meanwhile, Carla reveals a personal secret.

"Hey. Wake up." Lucy smacked Zavala's face lightly with a bundle of papers. "Don't be going into Takashi Land."  
  
Zavala blinked, and gazed at her with a confused expression. "Takashi Land?"  
  
"Basically, stop drooling over Shiro. We're talking important biz right here. You know, about the hierarchy of the Alliance?"  
  
The Commander Vanguard rubbed his eyes. "Yes. Yes, I know."  
  
The three stood around the Vanguard Hall's table. Other people present included Princess Allura of the Alteans, Takashi Shirogane himself, Krolia as a representative of the Blade of Marmora, Mega Man X, Princess Lucina of Ylisse, King Lumine of Valla, Queen Hinoka of Hoshido, King Xander of Nohr, the right-hand of the Cocoon Eirika, the chrono angel Carla, the roamer Madelyn, and Robina the Hood representing Lore as a whole. All of them were in a meeting to discuss the future of the Alliance.  
  
"So, as we were saying..." Lucy raised her hand up high and positioned it there. "Instead of the Alliance acting on the Vanguard alone, as it has been up until now..." She placed her other hand above it. "We want a democracy in this Tower."  
  
"It does sound odd for an entire organization to act on only one position of power out of multiple," King Xander stated.  
  
Queen Hinoka nodded, hands clasped together. "While we won't say a democracy in question, it should be something made out of all the positions of power."  
  
"Like a council," Robina pointed out.  
  
Lucina looked over. "That doesn't sound too bad of an idea. A council made up of all of us."  
  
"That would mean we need to install a whole big room for a council meeting room, cause it can't be held here every time." Lucy pointed at the table. "Kind of cramped, as it is."  
  
"Could it work?" Krolia looked around.  
  
Ikora nodded. "A council to dictate the Alliance sounds fair. That way, we get all the major voices to decide on logical conclusions, such as what exactly to do in this Alliance-Umbra War."  
  
"It's less a war, more a bickering," Lucy argued. "There hasn't been any big fights, yet!"  
  
There was a pause, and X could already feel his stomach twist into knots.   
  
"That's...actually why I'm here," Lucina admitted. "To tell you the Umbrati made their first move..." She paused before continuing with watery eyes. "...by destroying Ylisse and all its neighborhooding nations."  
  
Everyone reacted with shock, spinning to stare at the blue-haired girl. Eyes were wide, and mouths were agape. A few people tried to say something, but nothing came out. Instead, they looked to each other, hoping for somebody else to say the first word.  
  
It was X that did it, gently clasping Lucina's hands. "Lucina, were...there any survivors?"  
  
"Nothing. There was nothing. Everything is...gone. A barren land. I'll take you there to show you myself!"  
  
Shiro raised a hand. "There's no need. We know plenty."  
  
The princess shivered, a sudden chill down her spine. She suddenly rushed into X's arms, who immediately pulled her into a comforting embrace.  
  
"It was all...d-destroyed!" She stuttered, tears already spilling out. "Every life taken away...Worst, it happened...It all happened in a few days! A few days, and I didn't even hear of it! They took them all out like nothing!"  
  
"Are you telling me the darkness destroyed a whole world behind our backs?" Allura questioned, terror creeping into her shaky voice.  
  
"Okay, I know at this point, Shadow Lady is toying with us," Lucy declared. "She can wipe us out in a minute, but noooooo! Just flaunting her powers like nothing matters! Toying with us like those feathers on a string attached to a stick! You know those cat toys? She's doing that to us!"  
  
"Just like Fox would." Eirika clutched the table to steady herself. "No wonder they're in league with each other. She's as sadistic as him."  
  
"She knows she can't outright destroy us all due to Carla rendering the timeline immune to being consumed," Zavala clarified. "So, she's using that in her own advantage to put us on edge and pick us off, one by one."  
  
Lumine spoke up. "What does that mean for us? I mean, are we actually safe?"  
  
"None of us are," Madelyn replied. "This is a do or die situation." After a moment, she grinned. "Nothing I'm new to."  
  
"I already know I'm going to lose soooo many nights of sleep to this..." Lucy murmured.  
  
"That being said, shouldn't we get around to officiating the council members?" Robina questioned. "Can't stand around and mope in this meeting. We have to get business done, the fifteen of us."  
  
"Then make it fourteen," Madelyn declared. "I'm stepping down." She even stepped backwards a bit to prove her point. "I'm not a counsellor type."  
  
Lucy winced. "Ooh...That's a problem. Even numbers in a group that would vote on decisions never ends well."  
  
"I am no leader." Carla's gloved hand rose into the air. "If one must step down, I will."  
  
Ikora looked surprised at that. "Are you sure? You are the one that made the Alliance, after all."  
  
"I can make things. The problem is maintaining them." The chrono angel only crossed her arms, staring at Ikora with a cocked eyebrow. "Are you so faithful in my abilities, Warlock Vanguard?"  
  
"See? See? That's the _thing_! It's the _thing_! God!" Lucy hit the side of her head, seeming to try to crack the Da Vinci Code. "It's so annoying! It's like she treats us as old friends! Have I met her before? It's so irritating!"  
  
"She uses formalities like any other person," Ikora retorted calmly.  
  
"I know, but the tone! You know by the-Nnnnnnrgh! What are you hiding, you feathery Pandora's Box?!"  
  
Carla remained calm. "If I am Pandora's Box, you should refrain from questioning my contents."  
  
"I will crack open your head and literally perform brain surgery to find out why you treat me like an old friend from high school freshman year, Pandora's Box or NAH!" Lucy put so much passion and fury into the last 'nah'.  
  
"...Okay." Zavala's monotone response summed up his relationship with the Hunter Vanguard quite well. "To all that do not wish to join the council, you are excused. Those that wish to join it, please remain here to discuss further topics regarding the change of developments."  
  
Madelyn and Carla turned and walked out, leaving the others. While they were mostly staring at Lucy and wondering what was going through her head in that moment, they decided to focus on the more important matters. Slowly, they began to return to the discussion they were having before.  
  
Carla made sure nobody was looking before sitting at the Hunter Vanguard station. Looking over it, she seemed lost in her own thoughts of nostalgia and memories she may never relive. A hand ran over the table, before she pulled it away and let it drop to her side.  
  
Another glance, and she pulled out a folded-up piece of paper. Unfolding it, she revealed it as a picture with now numerous creases in it. It was also torn, a third of the picture gone. What was left was a peaceful-looking woman wearing a dress of various blue shades, and her light orange hair in a bun in the back. The other was a man grinning and waving hello to the camera, wearing a cloak and outfit almost identical to Cayde's. The beginnings of a scarf could be seen, but it was cut off by the third missing.  
  
"What are you doing?"  
  
"GAH!" She jumped onto her feet and stared at Rowan leaning over to look at her. "Wh...What do you want?"  
  
"Hey, no need to be jumpy!" He put his hands up in defense. "I'm friendly! Just a little bit curious! A curious cat! A weird, blonde, curious cat!"  
  
"You...talk a lot."  
  
"I want to get out every word I can! It's been years since I actually talked to a person!" Carla looked actually worried at that as he leaned in. "So, what was the photo? It looked all banged up."  
  
"...It was of my biological mother and my uncle."  
  
"Biological?"  
  
"Yes. I have adoptive parents and biological parents. However, I've never met my biological father before."  
  
"Well...If it makes you feel better, my father died of sickness very long, and I have little positive memories of him!" For a moment, Rowan looked away, happiness fading to show a dull sadness underneath. "He always preferred my sister over me..."  
  
At that, Carla scowled. "As one with an adoptive sister, I know as well as anyone else you cannot play favorites with your children."  
  
"Eh, it's what he did." Rowan merely shrugged in an answer. "I still don't even know what he and my sister did. It probably didn't have anything to do with becoming king. I was fluffed up to do that!" He lost his smile. "Well?"  
  
"Huh?" Carla snapped out of her half-baked thoughts. "Well...what?"  
  
"What happened to them? Your mom and uncle and sister?"  
  
She looked a bit hesitant at that. Rowan thought that he struck a bad chord until she opened her mouth. "I honestly don't know."  
  
"What? You...?"  
  
"I wasn't originally meant to come here alone. The darkness wronged us. My uncle was on the war path, and my mother tried to stop us. We all got caught in a blast of chrono magic, but thankfully, my sister wasn't there. That was five years ago. I've been alone in this timeline ever since. I would go back into our hidden home to make sure she's okay, but..." Carla sighed. "No doubt that the darkness would track me to it."  
  
"...You've been here since the Otherworlder War?"  
  
"To be honest, I came here just before the war kicked into high gear. However, I stayed away from the fight. It wasn't why I was here, but..." Carla sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. "Really, I think I should have participated in the war."  
  
"Why so?"  
  
"Because the Shadow Queen came into power just before the war. I don't think it was a coincidence."  
  
Rowan frowned. "So, you're saying the Otherworlder War has something to do with the Shadow Queen?"  
  
"No doubt about it. It could also explain why Fox works with her. They've been in tandem even during the war." The chrono angel sighed again, almost wistfully. "For the past few years, I really wanted to go and find my family, but...I knew I couldn't, or I would risk the danger of the Queen destroying this timeline behind my back."  
  
The boy tilted his head. "So, the thing that stopped you was your fear of the Queen taking us by surprise?"  
  
"That is exactly it," Carla answered.  
  
Rowan leaned against a wall and thought. A finger drummed absentmindedly on his forehead, and his face scrunched up with his head first to the ground to stare at his feet. Carla wouldn't lie if she said that he looked almost adorable like that.  
  
"Then...Why don't we go now?" He questioned, looking up and relaxing his face.  
  
Carla blinked in surprise. "What?"  
  
"Think about it. The Alliance could survive on its own. What's to stop us from going out and finding your family now?" Rowan walked forward, and placed a hand on the chrono angel's shoulder. She refrained from shivering at the cold metal touch in order to preserve the moment. "I can help you find them. I know what it's like to lose them."  
  
"...I..."  
  
"Listen. Family is the most important thing. You can't let anything get in between you and your loved ones. I let my emotions get the better of me, and look where I am, now. No home, no family, nobody to turn to...I'm alone. And I know you are, too." Rowan mustered enough courage to smile. "So let's be alone together. Let's get out of this loneliness together." His hands traced Carla's arms, and found their way into clasping her smaller and gentler hands in his own. "Okay?"  
  
Carla wasn't answering. She just stared at him, not responding. Rowan slowly let go of her hands, his smile fading. The tears having been moved out by his own words made his eyes water, and not in a good way.  
  
"S...Sorry." Rowan dropped his hands. "I know you hate me. I probably shouldn't have said-"  
  
"Rowan." Carla's voice shook. The blonde looked up to see tears pouring down her face. "...I'm sorry for everything that's happened to you. You're such a sweet person, and all the world has done is...hate you." He could feel her hands taking his again. "But I won't be the world. I..." She clasped his hands close to her chest. "I'll love you so you can ignore the world's hate."  
  
"Then...Be my world. Be...the world I love."  
  
The chrono angel only nodded before she grabbed his head and pulled it forward. The kiss they shared lasted much longer than it should have, was clumsy, and when they pulled back, Rowan noticed Carla's upper lip bled a bit. But the best part was is that they just had the exact same dumb grin.  
  
Carla wiped her lip, flicking away the blood. "That was..."  
  
"Sorry."  
  
"No, it was mostly me."   
  
Carla giggled, and Rowan realized she's never fully smiled before. He found himself mesmerized by her full grin, and his internal temperature probably raised a few degrees.  
  
He quickly cleared his throat. "Now, um...about your family."  
  
She immediately paused at that. Her smile faded, and turned into a frown. She had almost a guilty expression, and she looked away, bob cut swishing with her head movement.  
  
"Wh-What's wrong?" Rowan stammered, the moment seeming to slip from his fingers. "Did I-?"  
  
"No, no, no! You said nothing wrong! Just..." Carla cleared her throat. "Before we find my family...I want to talk to my adoptive mother."  
  
Rowan looked around. "Huh? She's here?"  
  
"You've met her before. You know her." The chrono angel began walking away. "She just...doesn't know me."  
  
"What does that...?" Rowan started, then paused. "...You're from the future, aren't you?"  
  
Carla froze, and looked back. "You...guessed so easily?"  
  
"I mean...I've met somebody who was someone's daughter from the future and hid her identity for some odd reason, before." Rowan nervously chuckled, but stopped when Carla didn't laugh in return. "...You're scared of talking to her, aren't you?"  
  
"Well...What do I say?" Carla questioned to mostly herself. "I don't think she'll believe me upright."  
  
Rowan laughed. "Carla, in the span of about a month, you pulled heroes of multiple worlds and galaxies to this one location to fight darkness itself, and can control time at a whim. I think Lucy-1 would be open to belief."  
  
The chrono angel's head shot up at that. "You...guessed that, too?"  
  
"It was easy to connect the dots after the first revelation. There's only one child here that's a chrono angel, and you guys share the same hair color." Rowan put a gentle hand on Carla's shoulder. "I think she'll still see you as her daughter, even if your name isn't Talli."  
  
"...Right." Carla nodded, putting on a confident expression. "Let's go find her."  
  
"No need." Both young adults jumped and looked to see Lucy step out of hiding, arms crossed and hood up. "I heard it all."  
  
"Hunter Vanguard!" Carla stammered. "I-"  
  
Lucy raised a hand. "Up, bup bup bup bup!" She eyed Carla, then beckoned her with a hand. "Come over here."  
  
Carla glanced over at Rowan. On instinct, he reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. When the chrono angel looked back up at him, he nodded before nudging his head at Lucy. With that, Carla exhaled and let go of his hand, walking over to the Hunter Vanguard.  
  
Lucy's face was completely serious. She stared down Carla, and her eyes bored into her. The chrono angel gulped, finding herself trembling under her gaze.  
  
"That explains it all." Lucy's cold face melted away to let a warm smile and misty eyes  show. "Why you treated me like you knew something I didn't. Welcome home, muffin."  
  
She broke down in that moment. Bawling, Carla pulled Lucy into a tight hug. The Hunter was eager to return it, lacing her fingers into Carla's hair from behind. Her daughter began to cry into her unpadded shoulder, soaking the fabric with tears. All she did was stroke her head, tears going down her own face.  
  
"Mom...Mom...!" Carla repeated, sobbing.  
  
"Hey, hey. It's okay. I'm here." Lucy gave a dry laugh. "I don't know when I last saw you in your life. Mind giving me a timeframe on that?"  
  
"L-Little more than...twenty years..."  
  
"Damn. Two decades? I'm sorry, muffin." She let her voice tremble. "I'm sorry...I-I'm...so sorry..." She moved to wipe her years. "Dammit, you're making me chop onions over here..."  
  
Rowan watched the events while cracking a smile. His own eyes began to water, and he rushed to wipe the tears away. It wasn't his time to cry. It was Carla's, and her mother's, too.  
  
"What happened?" Lucy asked. "What happened to you?"  
  
"Darkness," Carla answered. "Darkness consumed my timeline. I ran, but...I lost it all." She hiccuped. "I found my birth mother in the Walkways after finding my way there..."  
  
"Your birth mother." Lucy's expression darkened. "The one that left you for Fallen to pick off."  
  
"I've never forgiven her."  
  
"Good." Lucy pulled back from the hug. "Nobody should be forgiven for an action like that." She smiled, and pet Carla on the head. "Look at you. All grown up and a badass. I bet Talli has a lot to look forward to."  
  
Carla smiled. "Thank you..." She wiped her tears. "But really, I wouldn't be here today without my uncle."  
  
"Oh! Hate to interrupt, but we said that we would go and see if we can find them!" Rowan suddenly exclaimed. "Your biological family!"  
  
The chrono angel looked surprised. "Oh! I got so caught up, I completely forgot."  
  
Lucy grinned. "Well? Go find them!" She squished Carla's cheeks, adapting quickly to the new revelation. "Go and make momma proud!"  
  
Carla struggled to get her hands off. "H-Hey! Mom!" She paused, then smiled. "...Actually, keep doing that. It's been years since I called anyone Mom. I just called my biological mother by her real name."  
  
"If you say so!" Lucy cheered, continuing to squish.  
  
Rowan looked embarrassed at what was happening. "Erm...If I could ask...Who are they?"  
  
Carla batted away Lucy's hands. "Oh. My mother is one of the most well-known chrono angels. She specializes inhaling and defensive magic, if anything. My sister is really shy, and has a cat named Ambrosia. As for my uncle, he was a Guardian, until his Ghost got destroyed. He's got a chrono angel arm, and was a well-known sniper and Hunter. He's from my father's side." Carla smiled at Lucy. "Cayde-6."  
  
Lucy chuckled. "I wasn't aware Cayde had a brother."  
  
"It's more like they see each other as brothers."  
  
"What's his name?" Rowan asked.  
  
Carla smiled in return. "Andal Brask."


	16. Ex. Chapter: An Eye For an Eye

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Characters in chapter:
> 
> -Lucy-1  
> -Ghost Echo  
> -Uldren Sov  
> -Pulled Pork
> 
> Chapter summary:
> 
> Revelations and forgiveness come in spades.

"Andal Brask. Andal, Andal Brask..." Lucy flipped through papers late at night. Only she stood in the Vanguard Hall, Echo flying around her. "Come on, Echo. Help me out."

"With what?" Echo questioned. "I know that name less than you do!"

"Are you serious? I swear on my life, Cayde's said that name before, but with past tense! It makes no sense! Isn't that guy dead?" Lucy smacked herself by hitting her head on the table. "Uuuuugh! I don't get it..."

Her Ghost watched her. "Well...All we can do is keep skimming the files for Andal Brask. We're bound to find something."

"I know, but...We've been at this for hours! I don't even know what I'm looking for." She ruffled her own hair out of frustration. "Even Ikora and Zavala are asleep, at this point." She looked around at the dark environment. "I don't blame them, I mean...at least they need to sleep."

"You like sleeping," Echo pointed out.

"Who doesn't?"

As Lucy restacked the files, Echo suddenly turned. A smaller Ghost was trying to slip through the door. A Hunter's hand pushed open the door more, and they squeezed through, hovering and shaking themselves off a bit.

The Ghost looked to her Guardian. "Hey, Lucy?"

"Huh? What?" She looked up, and noticed the helmed Hunter stepping in after their Ghost. "Oh, hey! Deimos! New guy! Yea, come on in!" Deimos began to walk over. "You're lucky I was in here. If you entered, and I wasn't, the alarm set at night would go off, and boy, you'll be in trouble!"

The Ghost sighed in relief. "We, uh...didn't know that." They imitated clearing a throat. "My name is Pulled Pork."

"...Wait. You're that Ghost that's been looking for their Guardian all ages! I heard about you!" Lucy flashed another grin. "Deimos, you got lucky! You were a pure bean's goldmine!"

Deimos slowly nodded, not knowing what to say. Pulled Pork just stared at Lucy, muttering a "He was, but..."

The Vanguard's smile twitched, but it didn't drop. "...What's the but in this?"

"Look, are you alone? We really need to talk to you alone."

Lucy gestured alone. "Alone as can be! What can a Vanguard do for one of theirs?"

The Ghost seemed to confirm that before returning their sights to Lucy. "Once Deimos takes off his helmet, you have to promise not to punch him."

At that, she laughed. "Come on, now! He can't be that ugly!" She could tell Deimos was glaring at her under his helmet. "Alright, alright. I promise. I can't think of a reason I'll sock him, anyways."

"Well..." Deimos finally spoke up, pulling down his hood and grabbing his helmet. "You can say Deimos isn't my real name." The Awoken pulled it off, letting black hair with white highlights drop out from being pressed to his head.

Lucy immediately froze. "Your...picture was in the file I gave Keith..."

"My real name is Uldren Sov. In my past life, I was the murderer of your husband."

She said nothing. Her mouth moved slightly, but no sound came out. Her eyes were wide as she took in his entire face, who in turn looked at her with a sad expression. One of either sympathy, regret, or just straight-up guilt.

"...You...You're Uldren?" Lucy almost whispered. "The prince of the Reef?"

"I...I have no recollection of being the prince, but..." Uldren looked down. "I am. I'm sorry to have hid it from you, ma'am."

Lucy sighed, then her scowl deepened. "May I punch you?"

"You can."

That was all she needed. Lucy cocked her fist back and slammed it right into Uldren's head, knocking him right down on the ground. Stars swam in his vision as his head throbbed, similar to how it would feel if he was hit in the face by a metal beam.

The Hunter Vanguard wheeled around to face Pulled Pork, who drifted back a bit. "You! Why did you...Why did you revive him?!"

"I-I didn't know it was him when I did so!" The Ghost stammered. "Neither me or Keith did!"

Lucy paused. "Keith? Keith is in on this? The Paladin?"

Uldren got up. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I did it. I can't fully research into my past without suspicion being aroused. So, that's the second reason I wanted to talk to you. I want you to help me with that."

She scoffed. "And the first?"

"To apologize." He sighed. "I can't fix this. But I, as a different person, had no control over what I did. I don't even remember it. Frankly, it...horrifies me, that I did something like that." He ran a hand through his hair in a nervous manner. "We knew you would be mad, but...I couldn't live with myself hiding the truth from my leader."

Lucy only looked away. "I can't accept your apology. I know you now don't remember it and...I get that. Guardians have no control over their past. But it's so hard. You killed my damn husband!"

"I know you're mad." Uldren leaned forward. "That's why I want to let you kill me."

Both her and Pulled Pork looked shocked at that. "What?!"

"Uldren, what are you saying?!" Pulled Pork questioned.

He raised a hand to silence him. "I know. I know. She can kill me once, however she likes. But that would be all I would allow her. So she might as well make it count." Uldren stuck a hand out to Lucy. "Does that sound fair, Vanguard?"

"...Yea." Slowly, Lucy shook Uldren's hand. "It does."

As the helmet was replaced on his head, Pulled Pork sighed. "I hope you know what you're doing, Uldren."

Lucy glanced at Pulled Pork. "If he does any shifty stuff, it's on you, Ghost."

Two hours later, Uldren came back from outside the Tower with horribly dented and dusted armor, his helmet perfectly clean and shiny. When he met back up with Keith, of course he found the Black Paladin worried and wondering what had happened.

He only answered by glancing over at Pulled Pork with a knowing look. "Some form of vengeful spirit," he answered. "It's been quelled, now."

Keith scoffed, trying to sort out the worst of the dents. "What does that even mean?"

"It's not one to worry about."


End file.
